Layla Moran

We launched a call for evidence on 25 March to gather views and inform a longer-term decision about whether to make express provision for councils to meet remotely on a permanent basis. The call for evidence closed on 17 June.

The Department has considered the responses to the consultation and the Government will respond shortly.

We appreciate the Local Government Association's detailed and insightful 'Vision for Urban Growth and Recovery' report and value the recommendations made. We also welcome the continued engagement with the sector as we progress our levelling up agenda. In this respect, we share the view expressed in the Report on the importance of continued partnership between Government and key stakeholder groups.

The Government has committed over £750 million this year to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping.

This includes over £202 million across England for the Rough Sleeping Initiative (RSI), which is more than an 80% increase from the £112 million provided last year. The funding will provide up to 14,500 bed spaces and 2,700 support staff. Within this year's RSI, local authorities were asked to plan for winter and any other surge capacity throughout the year.

We recognise that winter brings with it extra pressures especially with the on-going risk of COVID-19. For this reason, we are we are supporting the voluntary and community sector with the £3.8 million Homelessness Winter Transformation Fund. This funding will help provide safe accommodation that creates a sustained route of the streets by supporting investment in improved accommodation and of self-contained bed spaces over winter 21/22.

Night Shelters that are considering opening this winter should consult their local authorities and consider the COVID-19: provision of night shelters guidance on gov.uk, which was drafted with advice from the UK Health Security Agency (formerly Public Health England).

The Government has committed over £750 million this year to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping.

This includes over £202 million across England for the Rough Sleeping Initiative (RSI), which is more than an 80% increase from the £112 million provided last year. The funding will provide up to 14,500 bed spaces and 2,700 support staff. Within this year's RSI, local authorities were asked to plan for winter and any other surge capacity throughout the year.

We recognise that winter brings with it extra pressures especially with the on-going risk of COVID-19. For this reason, we are we are supporting the voluntary and community sector with the £3.8 million Homelessness Winter Transformation Fund. This funding will help provide safe accommodation that creates a sustained route of the streets by supporting investment in improved accommodation and of self-contained bed spaces over winter 21/22.

Night Shelters that are considering opening this winter should consult their local authorities and consider the COVID-19: provision of night shelters guidance on gov.uk, which was drafted with advice from the UK Health Security Agency (formerly Public Health England).

The Commission has not considered this. However, the Speaker has asked the Speaker’s Chaplain to liaise with St Margaret’s Church to develop a memorial service for the parliamentary community to take part in for those who have lost their lives to Covid. The service will take place in autumn if public health advice continues to allow church services and gatherings at that point.

As has been the case under successive Administrations, Prime Ministers will speak to their international counterparts on a range of issues.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given to PQs 147072 and 148867 answered on 22 February 2021.

This Government is committed to supporting all victims of domestic abuse, regardless of their immigration status. That is why, in December 2020, we launched a £1.5m support for Migrant Victims package, to provide access to safe accommodation and support for those with no recourse to public funds.

Throughout development of our scheme we have responded to concerns about potential barriers to support for migrant victims of domestic abuse, including by adapting the duration of the scheme and its linked prospectus.

At all times the estate has been kept safe and secure and able to support Parliamentary business as required.

It is not possible to provide a specific breakdown of costs relating to empty offices during this period. The following comparison against a similar period last year has been produced. Reductions in usage may not be solely related to Covid-19.

Chequers is not a government building; it is run and managed by an independent trust.

As has been the practice under successive Premiers, the Prime Minister uses Chequers consistent with the wishes of the donor, the late Sir Arthur Lee, who gave it to the nation for the use of the Prime Minister. Chequers is available to Ministers for both official and private use.

Sir Arthur Lee’s wishes are set out in the Chequers Estate Acts 1917: “It is not possible to foresee or foretell from what classes or conditions of life the future wielders of power in this country will be drawn. Some may be as in the past men of wealth and famous descent; some may belong to the world of trade and business; others may spring from the ranks of the manual toilers. To none of these in the midst of their strenuous and responsible labours could the spirit and anodyne of Chequers do anything but good. In the city-bred man especially, the periodic contact with the most typical rural life would create and preserve a just sense of proportion between the claims of town and country. To the revolutionary statesman the antiquity and calm tenacity of Chequers and its annals might suggest some saving virtues in the continuity of English history and exercise a check upon too hasty upheavals, whilst even the most reactionary could scarcely be insensible to the spirit of human freedom which permeates the countryside of Hampden, Burke and Milton. Apart from these more subtle influences, the better the health of our rulers the more sanely will they rule and the inducement to spend two days a week in the high and pure air of the Chiltern hills and woods will, it is hoped, benefit the nation as well as its chosen leaders."

Chequers is not a government building; it is run and managed by an independent trust.

As has been the practice under successive Premiers, the Prime Minister uses Chequers consistent with the wishes of the donor, the late Sir Arthur Lee, who gave it to the nation for the use of the Prime Minister. Chequers is available to Ministers for both official and private use.

Sir Arthur Lee’s wishes are set out in the Chequers Estate Acts 1917: “It is not possible to foresee or foretell from what classes or conditions of life the future wielders of power in this country will be drawn. Some may be as in the past men of wealth and famous descent; some may belong to the world of trade and business; others may spring from the ranks of the manual toilers. To none of these in the midst of their strenuous and responsible labours could the spirit and anodyne of Chequers do anything but good. In the city-bred man especially, the periodic contact with the most typical rural life would create and preserve a just sense of proportion between the claims of town and country. To the revolutionary statesman the antiquity and calm tenacity of Chequers and its annals might suggest some saving virtues in the continuity of English history and exercise a check upon too hasty upheavals, whilst even the most reactionary could scarcely be insensible to the spirit of human freedom which permeates the countryside of Hampden, Burke and Milton. Apart from these more subtle influences, the better the health of our rulers the more sanely will they rule and the inducement to spend two days a week in the high and pure air of the Chiltern hills and woods will, it is hoped, benefit the nation as well as its chosen leaders."

I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to PQ 33512 on 21 April 2020, and to PQ 40655 on 11 May 2020.

Since the vaccination programme began, the Cabinet Office has worked closely with communications teams in local authorities to promote vaccine uptake, particularly to communities with lower vaccine take-up. Support has included the commissioning of translated materials, the deployment of upweighted advertising in specific areas, and the use of multi-lingual local community street teams to share information about the available vaccines.

Through the Community Champions scheme councils and voluntary organisations will deliver a wide range of measures to protect those most at risk - building trust, communicating accurate health information and ultimately helping to save lives. MHCLG has allocated over £23 million of funding to 60 councils and voluntary groups across England to expand work to support those most at risk from COVID-19 and boost vaccine uptake.

During the pandemic, employees (including civil servants) were advised to work from home where possible. From 19 July 2021, employees are no longer instructed to work from home and government departments, similar to other employers, are starting to plan for employees to gradually return to the workplace.

The Cabinet Office has not currently made any estimates of the number of civil servants who have been absent from work or working days lost due to long COVID across the Civil Service.

However, the Civil Service continues to improve its approach to health and wellbeing for all employees, assisting them to access the support they need. A range of best practice support is available including Occupational Health, Workplace Adjustments, Part Time on Medical Grounds and COVID-19 Supporting Attendance guidance.

The Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs’ Written Ministerial Statement of 21 April 2021 sets out the FCDO departmental ODA programme budget allocations. It does not include Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) allocations.

The total CSSF allocation for Financial Year 2021/22 is £874m. CSSF regional and thematic level allocations for 2021/22 will be confirmed to Parliament in a Written Ministerial Statement later in the year.

As has been the case under successive Administrations, Prime Ministers will speak to their international counterparts on a range of issues. There will be occasions where it is in the national interest that such discussions are confidential.

I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to PQ 33512 on 23 March 2020, and PQ 144854 on 1 February 2021.

The Cabinet Office has addressed specific concerns from ethnic minority groups such as vaccine ingredients and amplified NHS voices publicising the use of religious sites as vaccination centres. Working with the Cabinet Office, vaccine communications from DHSC have appeared in 600 national, regional, local and specialist titles, including media for Asian, Bangladeshi, Bengali, Gujarati and Pakistani communities.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. I have therefore asked the Authority to respond.

The Government is committed to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050. This includes taking action to increase the use of renewable energy across the Government estate. Where this relates to solar panels and wind turbines on buildings occupied by the Cabinet Office, active consideration will be given to installation.

During the course of the year, 10 Downing Street hosts a number of events to celebrate the work of charities and mark initiatives such as Black History Month, NHS workers, Police Bravery, Pride, International Women’s Day and Girls’ Education. As part of this a freelance photographer is occasionally engaged for the primary purpose of taking photographs of the guests attending; these photographs are then shared with them after the event. This is since there are security restrictions on personal photography by guests. The cost of this over the last 12 months has been £5,100.

Given the Hon. Member's interest in freelance photography, I also refer her to the answer to 28 November 2011, Official Report, Column 733W, by her Rt Hon Friend, the Member for Kingston and Surbiton.

The full details of the information requested are not held centrally. Cabinet Office policy states that staff, and Ministers, should travel by the most efficient means of transport, and that public transport should be used where possible and appropriate.

Details of ministerial overseas travel are published regularly.

The full details of the information requested are not held centrally. Cabinet Office policy states that staff, and Ministers, should travel by the most efficient means of transport, and that public transport should be used where possible and appropriate.

Details of ministerial overseas travel are published regularly.

I refer the Hon. member to the answer given to PQs 62462, 62463 and 62562 on 25 June 2020.

Spend on external consultants is published in our Annual Report and Accounts. These are available on gov.uk.

Details of spend over £25,000 are also published on gov.uk.

The social media team does not engage with MPs on these matters.

Science is a global co-operative endeavour and scientists circulate around the world to collaborate and learn from their peers. To further our ambitions as a science superpower, we need to ensure the UK is internationally competitive for this globally mobile talent, with reduced barriers to mobility. We have therefore set out actions to ensure the UK attracts, develops and retains talented individuals and strong teams in research and development, in the R&D People and Culture Strategy. The strategy also recognises the importance of mobility between sectors, including between academia and industry.

We do not hold information regarding the domicile of publishing scientists. Although information is available on their academic affiliations, scientists can be affiliated to multiple institutions in multiple countries at the same time.

International researchers continue to move to the UK: the Global Talent visa, introduced on 20 February 2020, accounted for 2,768 grants in the High Value visa category for the year ending September 2021, around half (50%) of all High Value visa grants. UKRI’s Endorsed Funder route for obtaining the Global Talent visa has endorsed 875 applications since April 2021, currently receiving 100 to 120 applications per month.

We are continuously improving our approach to attracting global talent to the UK. Our R&D People and Culture Strategy set out actions to attract, retain and develop talented people, ensuring R&D careers in the UK are appealing to talented individuals and teams both domestically and internationally. The Global Talent visa, along with the forthcoming High Potential Individual and Scale-up visa routes announced in the Innovation Strategy, provides fast track visa routes for high skilled individuals and their teams.

Through the Office for Talent (OfT), we are delivering further visa reform and reviewing our talent offer to make sure that our programmes are among the best and most attractive in the world. BEIS has worked with the OfT and GREAT to launch an online service to attract highly skilled, international talent, providing key information on the UK offer and thus making it easier to come to the UK. This service is available at: https://greattalent.campaign.gov.uk/

The government will also launch a Global Talent Network, which aims to bring talented individuals to the UK in key science and tech sectors. The Global Talent Network will work with businesses and research institutions to identify UK skills needs and source Science and Tech talent in overseas universities and innovation hubs to bring to the UK.

HM Land Registry holds information on registered titles in England and Wales.

A dataset of Overseas companies that own property in England and Wales is publicly available via GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/hm-land-registry-overseas-companies-that-own-property-in-england-and-wales.

The dataset is a list of freehold or leasehold title registrations held by HM Land Registry, where the registered legal owner is an overseas company (a company incorporated outside of the UK).

As set out in my Written Ministerial Statement made on 2^nd November 2021, the Government remains committed to establishing a new beneficial ownership register of overseas entities that own UK property. This register will help combat money laundering and achieve greater transparency in the UK property market. We will legislate when parliamentary time allows.

On 30 December. the Government announced that we had met the target to donate 30 million COVID-19 vaccines by the end of 2021. We also reiterated our plan for millions more vaccines to be sent to other countries in 2022, including 20 million more Oxford-AstraZeneca doses and 20 million Janssen doses.

Of the over 30 million vaccines we have donated; approximately 25.4m have been received by COVAX, and 5.5m have been delivered directly by the UK to countries in need. These donations have benefitted more than 30 countries. The majority, 23.3m, of these donations have now arrived at their final destination, with 7.6 million of the doses received by COVAX that remain to be shipped to recipient countries in the next few weeks.

In addition to life saving vaccine, the Government have also recently pledged £105m of UK emergency aid to help vulnerable countries tackle Omicron, with a particular focus on Africa.

The Vaccine Taskforce and UK Research and Innovation are working closely with VMIC, which is a private company, to ensure the UK has a strong domestic vaccine manufacturing capability to contribute to the UK’s resilience against COVID-19 and other future health emergencies. At present these discussions are commercially sensitive.

On 30 October, we announced a further donation of 20 million Oxford-AstraZeneca doses. Of this, 10 million has already been sent to COVAX, and 10 million more are due to be delivered in the coming weeks between now and the end of 2021 to some of the world’s most vulnerable people. This means that at least 30.7 million doses of Oxford-AstraZeneca will have been donated in 2021.

The UK, COVAX and AZ are working closely together and with international partners such as UNICEF to allocate vaccines according to need, facilitate the rapid delivery of doses and maximise the shelf life available to recipients. This includes the provision of regular forecasts to COVAX to assist planning. Doses are sent directly by AZ to UNICEF, rather than having to be processed by the UK Government. Vaccines delivered by COVAX are distributed in line with the World Health Organisation's 'equitable allocation framework', which helps ensure COVAX doses reach those countries most in need. Recipient countries are informed of vaccine expiry dates, and doses are delivered in consultation with countries via COVAX to ensure they are ready and able to begin immediate roll out.

The challenging financial situation we face due to the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in a temporary reduction in the UK’s aid spending target from 0.7% of GNI to 0.5%. This means making difficult decisions when it comes to prioritising how we spend aid money to deliver the most impactful outcomes.

On 2^nd December last year, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary wrote to the Chair of the International Development Committee setting out the Strategic Framework for UK ODA, which details the UK’s foreign aid spending priorities. In line with these priorities, he confirmed each Department’s total ODA settlement on 26^th January.

The Government recognises the importance of supporting international research partnerships and supporting the UK research sector. My Rt. Hon. Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer committed to increasing UK investment in R&D to £14.6 billion in 2021/22 in this recent Budget.

We are currently working with UKRI, and all our Global Challenges Research Fund and Newton Fund Delivery Partners, to manage the Financial Year 2021/22 ODA allocations. UKRI have written to their award holders to set out the process for reviewing ODA funding next year, and to explore options for individual programmes. (Full details have been published on the UKRI website).

The challenging financial situation we face due to the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in a temporary reduction in the UK’s aid spending target from 0.7% of GNI to 0.5%. This means making difficult decisions when it comes to prioritising how we spend aid money to deliver the most impactful outcomes.

The Government recognises the importance of supporting international research partnerships, and supporting the UK research sector. Our commitment to research and innovation has been clearly demonstrated by my Rt. Hon. Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer’s Budget announcement of increasing investment in R&D across government to £14.6bn in 2021/22; and as has been set out in our Integrated Review ambitions, international collaboration is central to a healthy and productive R&D sector.

We are currently working with UKRI, and all our Global Challenges Research Fund and Newton Fund Delivery Partners, to manage the financial year 2021/22 ODA allocations. UKRI have written to many award holders setting out the next stage of the review of ODA funding next year, and to explore options for individual programmes. (Full details have been published on the UKRI website).

The challenging financial situation we face due to the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in a temporary reduction in the UK’s aid spending target from 0.7% of GNI to 0.5%. This means making difficult decisions when it comes to prioritising how we spend aid money to deliver the most impactful outcomes.

The Government recognises the importance of supporting international research partnerships, and supporting the UK research sector. Our commitment to research and innovation has been clearly demonstrated by my Rt. Hon. Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer’s Budget announcement of increasing investment in R&D across government to £14.6bn in 2021/22; and as has been set out in our Integrated Review ambitions, international collaboration is central to a healthy and productive R&D sector.

We are currently working with UKRI, and all our Global Challenges Research Fund and Newton Fund Delivery Partners, to manage the financial year 2021/22 ODA allocations. UKRI have written to many award holders setting out the next stage of the review of ODA funding next year, and to explore options for individual programmes. (Full details have been published on the UKRI website).

The challenging financial situation we face due to the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in a temporary reduction in the UK’s aid spending target from 0.7% of GNI to 0.5%. This means making difficult decisions when it comes to prioritising how we spend aid money to deliver the most impactful outcomes.

The Government recognises the importance of supporting international research partnerships, and supporting the UK research sector. Our commitment to research and innovation has been clearly demonstrated by my Rt. Hon. Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer’s Budget announcement of increasing investment in R&D across government to £14.6bn in 2021/22; and as has been set out in our Integrated Review ambitions, international collaboration is central to a healthy and productive R&D sector.

We are currently working with UKRI, and all our Global Challenges Research Fund and Newton Fund Delivery Partners, to manage the financial year 2021/22 ODA allocations. UKRI have written to many award holders setting out the next stage of the review of ODA funding next year, and to explore options for individual programmes. (Full details have been published on the UKRI website).

The Government recognises the importance of supporting international research partnerships, and supporting the UK research sector. Our commitment to research and innovation has been clearly demonstrated by my Rt. Hon. Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer’s Budget announcement of increasing investment in R&D across government to £14.6bn in 2021/22, and as has been set out in our Integrated Review ambitions, international collaboration is central to a healthy and productive R&D sector.

We are working with UKRI and all our Global Challenges Research Fund and Newton Fund Delivery Partners to manage the impact of next year’s ODA allocation.

Official statistics for the Green Homes Grant (Voucher) Scheme were released on 18 February. The data published in this release is for all applications to the end of January 2021:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/green-home-grant-statistics.

Further scheme statistics will be published in due course.

The Business Support Helpline operates in England and provides a range of support and advice to pre-start, and established businesses. This support includes advice following the UK’s exit from the EU. Businesses in the Devolved Administrations can access similar services within their country.

In the last 12 months (Feb 2020 to Jan 2021) the Business Support Helpline has received over 76,000 calls from individuals and businesses.

During the same period, for the Thames Valley area, the service has handled over 800 contacts from individuals and businesses.

Statistics are gathered by each Local Authority, rather than by constituency. However, in the same period the service handled 99 customers from the Oxford City Council area; 93 customers in the Vale of White Horse area; and 87 customers in West Oxfordshire.

The individual data can be seen in the attached tables.

The difficult finance situation we face due to the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in a temporary reduction in the UK’s aid spending target from 0.7% of GNI to 0.5%.

ODA allocations for all departments were determined in light of this by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, in consultation with HM Treasury, and with regard to wider commitments including the R&D ringfence. The Government’s commitment to research and innovation is clearly demonstrated through the recently published R&D Roadmap, and the £400m uplift in R&D spending announced in the Spending Review.

The Department remains committed to supporting my Rt. Hon. Friend the Prime Minister’s pledge to double the UK’s International Climate Finance to £11.6bn between 2021/22 and 2025/26, and we will deliver ambitious programmes to support both this commitment and the Prime Minister’s recent pledge to spend £3bn of our climate finance on nature. This significant uplift of our climate finance sets a clear benchmark for the international community towards COP26 and beyond.

The Government remains committed to international development and will continue to provide £10 billion of Official Development Assistance (ODA) in 2021-22.

The UK’s scientific excellence makes it a partner of choice for many international collaborations. The Government continues to support this excellence through its work towards a 2.4% of GDP investment in R&D by 2027. This has most recently been demonstrated in the £400m uplift to R&D funding announced by my Rt. Hon. Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Spending Review for financial year 2021/2022. International collaboration is?a?central feature of a healthy and productive?R&D sector.

The Government remains committed to international development and will continue to provide £10 billion of Official Development Assistance (ODA) in 2021-22.

The UK’s scientific excellence makes it a partner of choice for many international collaborations. The Government continues to support this excellence through its work towards a 2.4% of GDP investment in R&D by 2027. This has most recently been demonstrated in the £400m uplift to R&D funding announced by my Rt. Hon. Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Spending Review for financial year 2021/2022. International collaboration is?a?central feature of a healthy and productive?R&D sector.

The Government remains committed to international development and will continue to provide £10 billion of Official Development Assistance (ODA) in 2021-22to fight poverty, tackle climate change and improve global health.

The Government’s commitment to research and innovation is clearly demonstrated through the recently published R&D Roadmap, and the £400m uplift in R&D spending announced in the Spending Review. International collaboration is a central feature of a healthy and productive R&D sector.

We are committed to doubling UK’s International Climate Finance (ICF) to £11.6bn in the years 2021-2025. Our ICF helps to reduce deforestation and carbon emissions, for instance through our £200m+ investment to support green recovery across Africa, Asia and Latin America since June 2020.

The Government remains committed to international development and will continue to provide £10 billion of Official Development Assistance (ODA) in 2021-22 to fight poverty, tackle climate change and improve global health.

The Government’s commitment to research and innovation is clearly demonstrated through the recently published R&D Roadmap, and the £400m uplift in R&D spending announced in the Spending Review International collaboration is central feature of a healthy and productive R&D sector.

We recently reaffirmed our commitment to doubling UK’s International Climate Finance to £11.6bn in the years 2021-2025. The UK plays a crucial role in addressing the global challenge of climate change, responding to the needs of developing countries.

The UK’s exit from the EU does not alter the fact that our energy system is resilient and secure, and UK energy is supplied from diverse sources.

We have planned extensively for the end of the transition period, alongside National Grid and industry, to ensure electricity and gas demands are met. Electricity and gas will continue to flow over interconnectors between the UK and the EU at the end of the transition period in any scenario.

The forecast electricity margin for this winter is healthy, at 4.8GW or 8.3% additional generation. The forecast gas margin for this winter is also healthy, at around 79 million cubic metres or 15% more supply than would be required to meet demand on the coldest day in 20 winters.

BEIS publishes estimates of greenhouse gas emissions in the UK each year, with historical data on a consistent basis. The latest estimates going back to 1990 and including a provisional 2019 estimate can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/provisional-uk-greenhouse-gas-emissions-national-statistics-2019. They show that an estimated 435 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (MtCO₂e) were emitted in 2019 in the UK, down from 794 MtCO₂e in 1990.

In addition, estimates of carbon dioxide emissions in the UK since 1970 are available in table 4 in the data tables accompanying the final 2018 greenhouse gas estimates: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/final-uk-greenhouse-gas-emissions-national-statistics-1990-to-2018. The estimates for 1970 to 1989 do not include all of the sources of carbon dioxide emission included for 1990 onwards and estimates for other greenhouse gases are not available before 1990.

The Department spends overseas development assistance (ODA) on infrastructure programmes through its International Climate Finance (ICF).

The aim of the ICF is to support developing countries to respond to the challenges and opportunities of climate change, including reducing greenhouse gas emissions through initiatives such as the UK Sustainable Infrastructure Programme. All ICF programmes are assessed against an analytical framework which includes taking account of the impact on emissions in developing countries. The latest ICF results publication estimates that across HMG, ICF programmes have reduced or avoided 31 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions between 2011/12 and 2019/20, and will deliver much greater savings over their lifetimes (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-climate-finance-results).

Employees with the necessary qualifying service who consider that they have been dismissed unfairly may complain to an employment tribunal. The case of an employee who has been dismissed as a result of health issues clearly demands special consideration. For example, a tribunal will expect the employer to have considered whether there was suitable alternative work available. Employees may also be able to seek redress through the civil courts or employment tribunals if their dismissal breaches the terms of their contracts, for instance, because the employer has failed to comply with provisions relating to sickness absence.

The annual maintenance cost for the solar PV array for 2020 at the Department’s headquarters building at 1 Victoria Street, London is £955.00. Costs dating back earlier than this are unavailable as maintenance of the solar PV array formed part of a wider maintenance package.

The Department has spent the following amounts on electricity at 1 Victoria Street in the past two years and in 2020/21 to date. Data earlier than this is currently inaccessible.

*Data for 2020/21 is for April – June inclusive

At present, the Department has no plans to install additional solar panels or wind turbines at its headquarters building at 1 Victoria Street in the next five years. As part of the Department’s drive to reduce its impact on the environment and achieve net zero by 2050 at the latest, we are working with our contractors to identify the best route to sustainable energy supply.

As of 7 June, 782,246 loans have been approved under the BBLS, with a total value of £23.78 billion.

Capturing information relating to business ownership by ethnicity is at the discretion of the lender and will also be up to the business owner.

All air flights for the Department must be booked through the Crown Commercial travel management system and do not provide personal rewards. The Departmental expenses policy, which applies to special advisers as well as civil servants, sets out that air miles and similar benefits earned through official travel should not be used for private purposes.

Similar arrangements for Ministers are set out in the Ministerial Code; if it is impractical to use benefits for Government travel, Ministers may donate air miles to charity if permissible under the terms of the airline’s scheme and the charity is chosen by the airline.

Information on accumulated air miles is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

The funds in apprenticeship service accounts are available for levy-paying employers to use for 24 months before they begin to expire on a rolling, month-by-month basis. Employers began to pay the apprenticeship levy in April 2017 and levy funds began to expire in May 2019.

Due to taxpayer confidentiality, we are unable to publish the amount that individual employers have contributed through the apprenticeship levy or the amount of funds that have been spent or have expired.

For all employers in England, the total value of expired levy funds between May 2019 and April 2020 was £847 million. From May 2020 to February 2021, the latest period for which figures are available, the total value of expired levy funds is £1,039 million.

Employers are able to use all of the funds in their apprenticeship service accounts to support apprenticeships in their own or others’ businesses. Levy paying employers can transfer up to 25% of the annual value of funds in their apprenticeship service accounts to other employers. We are simplifying the transfers process, enabling employers to make strategic decisions over where their levy funds are spent. From August 2021, employers will be able to pledge funds for transfer, and we will introduce a new national online matching service, making it quicker and simpler for levy-payers to find employers that share their business priorities to transfer funds to.

We do not anticipate that all employers who pay the levy will need or want to use all the funds available to them, but they are able to do so if they wish. Funds raised by the levy are used to support the whole apprenticeship system. Employers’ unused funds are available to support apprenticeships in smaller employers who do not pay the levy and to cover the ongoing costs of apprentices who began training prior to the introduction of the levy.

We are again making available £2.5 billion for investment in apprenticeships in the 2021-22 financial year, which is double that spent in 2010-11.

The government has asked all English higher education (HE) providers registered with the Office for Students (OfS) to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism. The IHRA definition is an important tool in tackling antisemitism. Adopting this widely recognised definition sends a strong signal that HE providers take these issues seriously. My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, wrote to HE leaders most recently in October 2020 to reiterate the importance of the definition and to urge all providers to consider adopting it.

The government is pleased to report that at least 91 providers have now adopted the definition, with many more preparing to adopt. The decision on adoption of the definition rests with individual providers, but the government will continue to urge them to adopt the definition and ensure that HE is a genuinely fulfilling and welcoming experience for everyone.

I am proud that so many providers have taken a positive step towards eradicating antisemitism by adopting the IHRA definition, but further progress is still needed to stamp it out. This is why, in my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education’s most recent strategic guidance letter to the OfS, the government asked the OfS to undertake a scoping exercise, to identify providers which are reluctant to adopt the definition. The letter asked them to consider introducing mandatory reporting of antisemitic incident numbers by providers, with the aim of ensuring a robust evidence base, which the OfS can then use to effectively regulate in this area.

The Secretary of State also asked the OfS to ensure that, if antisemitic incidents do occur at a provider, they should consider if it is relevant in a particular case whether the provider has adopted the IHRA definition when considering what sanctions, including monetary penalties, would be appropriate to apply.

We will continue to work across government to ensure that racism and religious hatred of any kind is not tolerated anywhere, including in our world-leading universities.

We fully recognise that ensuring there is sufficient wraparound childcare in the future is crucial for working parents, as well as vulnerable children and young people, both in the short and longer-term, when more parents and carers start returning to workplaces. We also recognise that this will impact upon UK businesses which is why, on 26 January 2021, we issued a survey to up to 2,000 Ofsted registered providers nationwide.

The objectives of the survey were to gain a better understanding of how providers of wraparound childcare have been affected by the national COVID-19 restrictions and, in particular, the most recent lockdown announced on 4 January 2020, to establish what this means for the provision they are currently offering. This analysis of this data is in progress and will help inform the department’s ongoing response to the COVID-19 outbreak.

In addition, since June 2020, we have been in close communication with various stakeholders, including several wraparound providers, to understand the specific challenges that they face, and to determine how we can most effectively support the sector to ensure that adequate wraparound childcare provision remains in place for those most in need.

We recognise the value the wraparound childcare sector offers in terms of supporting children and young people’s general wellbeing and the positive effects it can have on their mental health through the enriching social opportunities it provides. Given the valuable support this sector can provide, the government has ensured that before and after-school clubs, holiday clubs, and other out-of-school settings have been able to stay open for all children eligible to attend school on-site, and during the national lockdown for vulnerable children and young people, as well as the children of critical workers. We have also published protective measures guidance for the sector, to ensure they can offer this provision as safely as possible, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/protective-measures-for-holiday-or-after-school-clubs-and-other-out-of-school-settings-for-children-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak. In addition, we have a full roadmap to reopening, as set out in ’COVID response – Spring 2021’, available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-response-spring-2021.

The move to using the October census for pupil premium funding will provide both schools and the Department with greater certainty around future funding levels earlier in the year. The majority of schools’ funding is already calculated by using data from the October census.

Per pupil funding rates for the pupil premium in the 2021-22 financial year will be the same as in the 2020-21 financial year, which is expected to increase pupil premium funding to more than £2.5 billion in 2021-22 as more children have become eligible for free school meals.

Pupil premium will continue to be based on “Ever6 FSM”, whereby all pupils eligible for free school meals at the time of the October census, or at any point in the previous 6 years, will attract pupil premium funding. As a result, we expect a typical school to see an increase in pupil premium funding from 2020-21 to 2021-22 as more children have become eligible for free school meals as a result of the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak.

Further information on this administrative change can be found on gov.uk under “allocation changes from 2021 to 2022” on: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium/pupil-premium.

The Government is investing over £400 million to support access to remote education and online social care services, including securing 1.3 million laptops and tablets for disadvantaged children and young people. This significant injection of laptops and tablets is on top of an estimated 2.9 million already owned by schools before the start of the COVID-19 outbreak.

The laptops and tablets are to help support schools, academy trusts and local authorities to provide access to remote education and online social care. Schools, colleges, academy trusts and local authorities are responsible for distributing the laptops and tablets and are best placed to know which children and young people need access to a device.

As of Monday 15 February 2021, over one million laptops and tablets have been delivered to schools, academy trusts, local authorities and further education providers. We are making further deliveries all the time and expect to achieve our overall commitment of delivering 1.3 million devices by the end of the spring term.

We have partnered with the UK’s leading mobile operators to provide free data to help disadvantaged children get online as well as delivering 60,000 4G wireless routers for pupils without connection at home.

Figures on the number of devices already delivered are available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/laptops-and-tablets-data. These figures are broken down by local authority and academy trust. Figures by constituency are not available.

The Government is investing over £400 million to support access to remote education and online social care services, including securing 1.3 million laptops and tablets for disadvantaged children and young people. This significant injection of laptops and tablets is on top of an estimated 2.9 million already owned by schools before the start of the COVID-19 outbreak.

The laptops and tablets are to help support schools, academy trusts and local authorities to provide access to remote education and online social care. Schools, colleges, academy trusts and local authorities are responsible for distributing the laptops and tablets and are best placed to know which children and young people need access to a device.

As of Monday 15 February 2021, over one million laptops and tablets have been delivered to schools, academy trusts, local authorities and further education providers. We are making further deliveries all the time and expect to achieve our overall commitment of delivering 1.3 million devices by the end of the spring term.

We have partnered with the UK’s leading mobile operators to provide free data to help disadvantaged children get online as well as delivering 60,000 4G wireless routers for pupils without connection at home.

Figures on the number of devices already delivered are available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/laptops-and-tablets-data. These figures are broken down by local authority and academy trust. Figures by constituency are not available.

Test kits delivered at the start of January 2021 continue to be used for regular testing of staff as well as for one off testing of pupils who are attending school (vulnerable children and the children of critical workers) as they returned to their institution. Additional test kits are supplied when individual settings run out.

Test kits delivered at the start of January continue to be used for regular testing of staff as well as for one off testing of pupils who are attending school (vulnerable children and the children of critical workers). Additional test kits are supplied when individual schools run out.

During the period of national lockdown, schools should continue to provide meal options for all pupils who are in school. Meals should be available free of charge to all infant pupils and pupils who are eligible for benefits-related free school meals who are in school.

Schools should also continue to provide free school meal support to pupils who are eligible for benefits related free school meals and who are learning from home. Extra funding will be provided to support schools to provide food parcels or meals to eligible children. Where schools cannot offer food parcels or local alternatives, the national voucher scheme is in place so that every eligible child can access free school meals during the national lockdown.

We are committed to supporting apprentices and employers to safely continue with, and complete, their programmes during the COVID-19 outbreak while maintaining quality.

We have worked closely with the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education and Ofqual to introduce flexibilities to 120 apprenticeships to mitigate the effects of disruption caused by the COVID-19 outbreak to end-point assessment. It is this assessment which certifies an apprentice has achieved occupational competence and completed the apprenticeship. Flexibilities include remote assessment where practicable, 12-week extensions to the time limit for completion, and relaxation of the order in which elements can be taken, and these have now been extended until March 2021. We continue to review the flexibilities in place to ensure high-quality assessment can continue and to support apprentices to take the next-steps in their careers. Apprentices are employed throughout the duration of their apprenticeship, but we have also made it possible for apprentices made redundant during COVID-19 to continue to take their end-point assessments and have introduced support to help them find a new employer.

Provisional figures show that 46,930 apprentices achieved their apprenticeships (frameworks and standards) between March 23 and the end of July this year.

Pilots have begun in a small number of schools and colleges using new Lateral Flow Devices that deliver a fast, on-site result. This will help us better understand how this new technology can be operationalised to protect those at high risk, find COVID-19 cases, and help enable us to go back to as normal a way of life as possible.

Schools currently involved in the pilots are located in: Poole, Lewisham, Salisbury, Hammersmith and Fulham, Kent, Blackburn with Darwen, Newcastle upon Tyne, Manchester, Birmingham, and West Sussex. There are currently no pilots taking place in educational settings in Oxfordshire.

The Government is piloting the use of lateral flow tests in education settings. This will help us better understand how this new technology can be operationalised to protect those at high risk, find the virus and help enable us to go back to as normal a way of life as possible. Establishing this mass testing capability, with fast turn-around times, should allow students to continue their studies safely and minimise the risk of virus transmission in our communities.

Education on financial matters helps to ensure that young people are prepared to manage their money well, make sound financial decisions, and know where to seek further information when needed. In 2014, for the first time, financial literacy was made statutory within the National Curriculum as part of the citizenship curriculum for 11 to 16 year olds.

We also introduced a rigorous Mathematics curriculum, which provides young people with the knowledge and financial skills to make important financial decisions. The Government has published statutory programmes of study for Mathematics and citizenship that outline what pupils should learn about financial education from Key Stages One to Four.

In the primary Mathematics curriculum, there is a strong emphasis on the essential arithmetic that pupils should have. This knowledge is vital, as a strong understanding of numeracy and numbers will underpin the pupils’ ability to manage budgets and money, including, for example, percentages. There is also some specific content about financial education, such as calculations with money.

We trust teachers to use their professional judgement and understanding of their pupils to develop the right teaching approach for their particular school, drawing on the expertise of subject associations and organisations such as Young Money.

Schools should have resumed teaching an ambitious and broad curriculum in all subjects from the start of the autumn term. This means that all pupils will be taught a wide range of subjects, so they can maintain their choices for further study and employment. Our latest guidance on teaching to support children is set out here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools.

Our £1 billion COVID-19 catch-up package, with £650 million shared across schools over the 2020/21 academic year, will support education settings to put the right catch-up support in place. Information about our COVID-19 catch-up package is found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/billion-pound-covid-catch-up-plan-to-tackle-impact-of-lost-teaching-time.

The Education Endowment Foundation have published a COVID-19 support guide to support schools to direct this funding. Information about our COVID-19 support guide is found here: https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/covid-19-resources/national-tutoring-programme/covid-19-support-guide-for-schools/#closeSignup.

For the longer term, the Department will continue to work closely with The Money and Pension Service and HM Treasury, to consider how to provide further support for the teaching of financial education in schools.

Education on financial matters helps to ensure that young people are prepared to manage their money well, make sound financial decisions, and know where to seek further information when needed. In 2014, for the first time, financial literacy was made statutory within the National Curriculum as part of the citizenship curriculum for 11 to 16 year olds.

We also introduced a rigorous Mathematics curriculum, which provides young people with the knowledge and financial skills to make important financial decisions. The Government has published statutory programmes of study for Mathematics and citizenship that outline what pupils should learn about financial education from Key Stages One to Four.

In the primary Mathematics curriculum, there is a strong emphasis on the essential arithmetic that pupils should have. This knowledge is vital, as a strong understanding of numeracy and numbers will underpin the pupils’ ability to manage budgets and money, including, for example, percentages. There is also some specific content about financial education, such as calculations with money.

We trust teachers to use their professional judgement and understanding of their pupils to develop the right teaching approach for their particular school, drawing on the expertise of subject associations and organisations such as Young Money.

Schools should have resumed teaching an ambitious and broad curriculum in all subjects from the start of the autumn term. This means that all pupils will be taught a wide range of subjects, so they can maintain their choices for further study and employment. Our latest guidance on teaching to support children is set out here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools.

Our £1 billion COVID-19 catch-up package, with £650 million shared across schools over the 2020/21 academic year, will support education settings to put the right catch-up support in place. Information about our COVID-19 catch-up package is found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/billion-pound-covid-catch-up-plan-to-tackle-impact-of-lost-teaching-time.

The Education Endowment Foundation have published a COVID-19 support guide to support schools to direct this funding. Information about our COVID-19 support guide is found here: https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/covid-19-resources/national-tutoring-programme/covid-19-support-guide-for-schools/#closeSignup.

For the longer term, the Department will continue to work closely with The Money and Pension Service and HM Treasury, to consider how to provide further support for the teaching of financial education in schools.

All children who live in the UK are eligible for a school place in England irrespective of their nationality.

The UK has offered a new route to full citizenship to British Nationals (Overseas) (BNO(S)) and their dependants. This means that those BN(O) families taking advantage of this offer and moving to the UK will be able to access a state-funded or independent school place for their children on the same basis as every other family in the UK. Those BN(O) families who choose not to avail themselves of our migration offer, and who remain in Hong Kong, will, as now, be able to send their children to the UK to access an independent school place under the UK study visa rules.

Advice to state-funded school admission authorities is contained within the School Admissions Code, which can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-admissions-code--2. We also provide specific advice to admission authorities on the rights of overseas pupils to access a school place on the following website: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/schools-admissions-applications-from-overseas-children.

We sent a bulletin to schools in England on 14 October containing information about changes to the immigration system which said: ‘Schools should continue to offer places to foreign national children who are resident in the United Kingdom.’

The Government Property Agency (GPA) does not currently have funded plans for the installation of solar panels and wind turbines on Department for Education buildings.

However, GPA has a Net Zero Programme in development to support the following UK Government targets:

• To reduce the UK’s net emissions of greenhouse gases by 100% relative to 1990 levels by 2050, making UK a ‘Net Zero’ emitter.
• To have at least a 50% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions across the public sector estate by 2032 (against a 2017 baseline).

GPA has committed to the following objectives for the Government Office Portfolio:

1. Improve energy efficiency (reduce consumption/ improve thermal efficiency)
2. Use green energy (decarbonise)
3. Generate and store green energy (locally)
4. Reduce embodied carbon (in construction)

In order to meet objective 3, GPA is currently assessing opportunities for the local generation and storage of green energy on Government Office Portfolio buildings, which may include solar panels and wind turbines.

It is vitally important that we do all we can to help parents to support their children’s learning at home during the COVID-19 outbreak.

We know that the Home Learning Environment is crucial for child development. There are a wealth of resources available for parents which can be accessed through the government’s Hungry Little Minds website which can be found at:
https://hungrylittleminds.campaign.gov.uk/.

We are working with our partners to ensure that we give parents the best support we can to help their children’s learning at home. We have also published guidance for parents about how to support their child’s development at home during the COVID-19 outbreak which can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/help-children-aged-2-to-4-to-learn-at-home-during-coronavirus-covid-19.

Guidance for parents and carers on the opening of early years settings is available here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/what-parents-and-carers-need-to-know-about-early-years-providers-schools-and-colleges-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak.

My right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister, announced a £1 billion support package for schools to help pupils catch up on lost teaching time.

We also announced on 20 July that we will be providing a one-off, ring-fenced grant of up to £96 million for colleges, sixth forms and all 16 to 19 providers, to provide small group tutoring activity for disadvantaged 16 to 19 students whose studies have been disrupted.

Many further education providers are already open for some learners, including those who are 16 to 19 and adults, subject to the required safety measures being met. From autumn 2020, all learners, including those who are 16 to 19 and adults will return to a full high-quality education programme delivered by their college or post-16 learning provider.

Colleges should plan on the basis that, from September 2020, all learners will return to a full high-quality education programme.

The Government has provided laptops and tablets to disadvantaged children who would otherwise not have access and are preparing for examinations in year 10, receiving support from a social worker, or are a care leaver. Where care leavers, children with a social worker at secondary school and children in year 10 do not have internet connections, the Government has also provided 4G wireless routers.

The Department has delivered laptops, tablets and 4G wireless routers to local authorities and academy trusts based on the Department’s estimates of the number of eligible children that do not have access to a device. Local authorities and academy trusts are best placed to identify children and young people who need devices and prioritise their needs.

The Department has published information about how many laptops, tablets and 4G wireless routers have been delivered to local authorities and academy trusts in total, which can be viewed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/laptops-tablets-and-4g-wireless-routers-progress-data. As of the end of June, over 202,000 laptops and tablets and over 47,000 4G wireless routers had been delivered to local authorities and academy trusts. It is taking, on average, 1.3 days from receipt of an order to the devices being dispatched to a local authority or academy trust.

The Department will be publishing data on devices delivered to each local authority and academy trust shortly.

As both my right hon. Friends, the Prime Minister and Chancellor of the Exchequer have made clear, the Government will do whatever it takes to support people affected by COVID-19.

The Government has provided clear guidance on the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme in relation to agencies and agency workers. This guidance can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/check-which-employees-you-can-put-on-furlough-to-use-the-coronavirus-job-retention-scheme#agency-workers-including-those-employed-by-umbrella-companies.

Schools are under no obligation to continue to pay supply teachers that they directly hire or hire via agencies once the supply teacher’s contract has ended. Typically, supply teachers are not contracted to work over the summer holidays when schools are closed.

Supply teachers employed via an agency who had previously been furloughed via the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme for at least 3 consecutive weeks, taking place any time between 1 March 2020 and 30 June, can continue to be furloughed until the scheme ends on 31 October, so long as their employer chooses to continue to furlough them.

The department has published guidance for providers who run community activities, holiday clubs, after-school clubs, tuition and other out-of-school provision for children over the age of 5. It sets out the safety measures that must be in place to ensure they can operate over the summer holiday. The guidance is available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/protective-measures-for-holiday-or-after-school-clubs-and-other-out-of-school-settings-for-children-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak.

This follows confirmation from my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister, that from Saturday 4 July, these providers can operate over the summer holiday, with safety measures in place.

While schools are open in a provider’s local area, providers of these settings should follow the same protective measures as schools to limit different groups of children mixing. This means that if a setting opens before the end of the 2020 summer term, they should ensure they are:

• only caring for children from the eligible groups (children in early years, Reception, year 1 and year 6) and priority groups (children of critical workers and vulnerable children);
• only caring for children from one school or early years provider; and
• working closely with the school or early years providers that their children attend, to ensure that, as far as possible, children are kept in the same small consistent groups that they are in throughout the day, and otherwise maintain social distance.

When state schools in a local area have closed for the summer term, out-of-school settings must operate in line with the published guidance and children of all ages and mixed schools may attend out-of-school settings in that area.

The table below provides the information requested relating to the use of private hire cars by the Department since 2015.

The Government has committed over £100 million to support vulnerable and disadvantaged children in England to access remote education and social care services, including by providing laptops, tablets and 4G wireless routers.

We are providing laptops and tablets to disadvantaged children who would otherwise not have access and are preparing for examinations in year 10, those receiving support from a social worker and care leavers. This includes looked after children, including unaccompanied asylum seeking children. It also includes former unaccompanied asylum seeking children who are now care leavers. Where care leavers, children with a social worker at secondary school and children in year 10 do not have internet connections, we are providing 4G wireless routers.

The Department has ordered over 200,000 laptops and tablets and allocated devices to local authorities and academy trusts based on its estimates of the number of eligible children that do not have access to a device. Local authorities and academy trusts are best placed to identify and prioritise children and young people who need devices. This may include children in families who are refugees or who are seeking asylum. The Department is working to provide these devices in the shortest possible timeframe; deliveries to schools and local authorities began in May and have continued throughout June.

We want to get more children back to school because it is vital for their education and their wellbeing. As such the Government has announced that all children will return to school from September.

On 2 July we published guidance to help schools plan for a full return of all pupils in the Autumn term:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools

The measures set out in this guidance provide a framework for head teachers to put in place proportionate protective measures for children and staff, which also ensure that all pupils receive a high quality education that enables them to thrive and progress. In welcoming all children back this Autumn, schools will be asked to minimise the number of contacts that a pupil has during the school day as part of implementing the system of controls outlined in the guidance to reduce the risk of transmission. If schools follow the guidance set out, they can be confident they are managing risk effectively.

The guidance also includes the process that should be followed if anyone develops COVID-19 symptoms while at school. This guidance has been developed with advice from, and is endorsed by, Public Health England.

SAGE publish papers from their meetings on a regular basis on the SAGE website. The list of papers released to date is available by following the link below, including several schools-related papers. This list will be updated to reflect papers considered at future meetings:

https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/scientific-advisory-group-for-emergencies-sage-coronavirus-covid-19-response.

The information requested is not held centrally.

In England, some local authorities provide discretionary grants to help with buying school uniforms. The local authorities which offer these grants set their own criteria for eligibility. The Department does not collect figures on the number of local authorities that offer uniform grants. In addition, schools may also offer individual clothing schemes, such as offering secondhand uniform at reduced prices; this would be a decision for the school to make.

No school uniform should be so expensive as to leave pupils or their families feeling unable to apply to, or attend, a school of their choice, due to the cost of the uniform. As such the Department supports the Education (Guidance about Costs of School Uniforms) Private Members’ Bill, to make our guidance regarding the cost considerations for school uniform statutory.

The Department’s current non-statutory guidance is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-uniform.

The new NHS Test and Trace service was launched on 28 May across England. Anyone who tests positive for coronavirus will be contacted by NHS Test and Trace and will need to share information about their recent interactions. The government has recruited 25,000 contact tracers, able to track 10,000 new cases a day.

If a child or young person in school develops symptoms compatible with COVID-19, they should be sent home and advised to self-isolate for 7 days and arrange to have a test. Where the child or young person tests positive, traced close contacts, including the rest of their class, should be sent home and advised to self-isolate for 14 days

As part of the national test and trace programme, local Public Health England health protection teams will contact all schools attended by someone who tests positive for COVID-19. The health protection team will work with the school to carry out a rapid risk assessment and advise of any further action that needs to be taken.

In some cases, a larger number of children may be asked to self-isolate at home as a precautionary measure. Where schools are observing guidance on infection prevention and control to reduce the risk of transmission, closure of the whole school will not generally be necessary and should not be considered outside of discussion with health protection teams.

The Department delegates to schools the management of their own budgets and the vast majority are operating with a cumulative surplus, with only a small percentage having a deficit. The latest published figures show 94% of academy trusts and 90% of local authority-maintained schools are in cumulative surplus or breaking even.

Data on maintained school deficits in financial year 2019/20 is not yet available. We will publish this data in December. The table below shows the number of maintained schools in cumulative deficit in each of the four preceding financial years. This data is published at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/la-and-school-expenditure-2018-to-2019-financial-year.

Trusts are the legal entities responsible for academies, including their finances, and, therefore, they account at trust level. The table below shows the number of academy trusts in cumulative deficit in each of the five previous academic years. We have published this data annually in the academies sector annual report and accounts (SARA) since 2015-16, which is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/academies-sector-annual-reports-and-accounts.

The provisional 2018/19 figure in the table is based on financial benchmarking data, available at https://schools-financial-benchmarking.service.gov.uk/Help/DataSources. This will be updated when the 2018/19 SARA is published in July.

The Department has listened to the feedback from stakeholders about the difficult circumstances faced by schools in the context of COVID-19 and the particular impact this has had on schools preparedness for the implementation of the Reception Baseline Assessment (RBA) in September 2020.

Taking into account that feedback, the Department has confirmed that the statutory implementation of the RBA will be postponed until autumn 2021. Instead, schools have the option of taking part in the RBA early adopter year and can sign up to participate via a survey sent to all eligible schools. The Department remains committed to implementing the RBA.

We have not made an assessment of the KiVa anti-bullying programme. All schools are legally required to have a behaviour policy with measures to prevent all forms of bullying. They also have the freedom to develop their own anti-bullying strategies and monitoring approaches to best suit their environment.

Our Preventing and Tackling Bullying guidance sets out that schools should develop a consistent approach to monitoring bullying incidents and evaluating the effectiveness of their approaches. It also directs schools to organisations who can provide support with tackling bullying related to race, religion and nationality. The guidance is available here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/preventing-and-tackling-bullying.

On 7 June, we announced more than £750,000 for the Diana Award, the Anti-Bullying Alliance and the Anne Frank Trust – to help hundreds of schools and colleges build relationships between pupils, boost their resilience, and continue to tackle bullying both in person and online. More information is available here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/extra-mental-health-support-for-pupils-and-teachers.

The department has also made resources available through the Educate Against Hate website. This website provides teachers, school leaders and parents with the information, guidance and support they need to challenge radical views, including racist and discriminatory beliefs, and is available here:
https://educateagainsthate.com/.

The National Tutoring Programme, worth £350 million, was recently announced as part of a £1 billion COVID-19 “catch-up” package to directly tackle the impact of lost teaching time and will increase access to high-quality tuition for the most disadvantaged young people.

We will be working closely with the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) to identify high quality tutoring organisations and support them to ramp up their recruitment of tutors.

The EEF will select high-quality tutoring organisations that meet agreed criteria. These organisations will have differing models - some may use volunteers to deliver tutoring sessions to pupils, while others will pay tutors. Dedicated coaches that are based in schools will all receive a salary.

The Department will continue to work with a wide range of sector representatives to develop a plan for all children to return to schools in September. This engagement includes meetings with teachers and headteachers through the Department for Education’s reference groups; meetings with expert advisors from the sector; meetings with scientific experts; meetings with teaching and support staff unions; and engaging with politicians from across the political spectrum.

Children and young people have experienced unprecedented disruption to their education during lockdown. The Government has therefore announced a package of support for schools to help children and young people make up for lost teaching time, with extra support in the form of a tutoring programme for those who need it most.

The universal catch up premium will provide £650 million to help schools make up for lost teaching time. We are currently working with HM Treasury to finalise funding arrangements for the £1 billion catch-up package.

Schools are receiving a £650 million catch up premium to make up for the education that has been lost due to the COVID-19 outbreak. The Education Endowment Foundation has published a COVID-19 recovery guide to support school leaders and staff. It provides guidance and information on the most effective strategies to catch up on lost education, and will allow schools to decide on how to best use this funding to support their pupils and their outcomes. The guidance can be found here: https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/covid-19-resources/covid-19-support-guide-for-schools/.

We know that each school will have different needs as a result of this outbreak and we trust headteachers to make the appropriate decisions for their students to ensure that this money is spent wisely.

The Department for Education does not collect data on pastoral and disciplinary staff within the School Workforce Census. The School Workforce Census captures data for non-teaching staff, auxiliary staff, teaching assistants and support staff, as well as for classroom teachers and leadership roles.

BAME teachers represented 9% of the teaching population in state funded schools in November 2018. 9% of classroom teachers, 6% of deputy and assistant headteachers and 4% of headteachers came from BAME backgrounds

11% of non-teaching staff were from a BAME background in November 2018. This was 12% for auxiliary staff and 11% for both teaching assistants and other support staff.

This data is available in Tables 5 and 6 of the publication, School Workforce in England, 2018, available here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/school-workforce-in-england-november-2018

Information for 2019 data was published on the 25 June 2020.

The guidance on how to phase the return of learners in further education is underpinned by our latest understanding of COVID-19. To limit the risk of increasing the rate of transmission, scientific advice indicates that we need to take a phased approach that limits both the number of young people in attendance and how much they mix with other learners and staff.

We are reviewing options for the Autumn term; we would like all learners to return to on site delivery as soon as possible and we are working with the sector to support them to do that, as soon as the scientific advice allows it, and with appropriate measures in place to manage the transmission risk.

Further education colleges have done fantastic work to deliver excellent online provision; many colleges had a significant online element to their offer prior to COVID-19, and we expect this to continue as there is a phased return to more on site delivery.

The Department is keen to protect school playing fields and schools are only able to sell playing fields when they demonstrate that the disposal does not impact their curriculum and that they have explored all possible alternatives.

The Department periodically updates a playing field decision list on GOV.UK and the next update will be in July. The Department is currently collating data for this update. The list is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-land-decisions-about-disposals.

As both my right hon. Friends, the Prime Minister and Chancellor of the Exchequer have made clear, the Government will do whatever it takes to support people affected by COVID-19.

Our latest guidance on remote education during COVID-19 is set out below:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/remote-education-during-coronavirus-covid-19

The Department is continuing to assess the impact of the potential effect of school closure on children and young people’s education attainment, including on remote education. We are working closely with schools, sector organisations, international institutions and across Government to understand the risks to education attainment and wellbeing, and identify the children and young people that need help.

We are committed to ensuring that all children can continue to learn remotely in a number of ways during these very difficult circumstances, and are supporting sector-led initiatives such as the Oak National Academy. This new enterprise has been created by 40 teachers from schools across England. It will provide 180 video lessons for free each week, across a broad range of subjects, for every year group from Reception through to Year 10. By 24 May, over 2.3 million users had visited the Oak Academy site and over 8.6 million lessons had been accessed.

However, it is up to each school to determine how to deliver education to its pupils and we recognise that many schools have already shared resources – both online and printed resources – for children who are at home.

I refer the hon. Members to the answer I gave on 23 June 2020 to Question 54195.

The Department’s consultancy expenditure is presented in the table below by each financial year as requested from 2017 to 2020.

Expenditure for financial year 2020/21 has not been included as the financial year commenced as of 1 April 2020 and this information has not been released in the public domain. For financial year 19/20 the Department has not published the annual accounts and is waiting sign off and audit approval to release the data. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic an extension for the submission of annual accounts has been applied across Government Departments.

These are rapidly developing circumstances; we continue to keep the situation under review and will keep Parliament updated accordingly.

The national voucher scheme for free school meals currently includes a variety of supermarkets. Initially, the scheme included supermarkets that already have e-gift card arrangements in place with our supplier, Edenred, including Asda, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Morrisons, M&S and Waitrose. On Monday 27 April we added Aldi to this list and on Wednesday 29 April we added McColl’s. We have been working with other supermarkets to encourage them to join. Any additional supermarkets would need to have the right infrastructure to deliver e-gift cards across their network of stores.

Schools are best placed to make decisions about the most appropriate free school meal arrangements for eligible pupils during this period. In the first instance, we are asking schools to speak to their catering teams and food suppliers about preparing meals or food parcels that could be collected by or delivered to families that are not in attendance. Where this is not possible, schools can use the national voucher scheme or make alternative voucher arrangements locally. Our guidance for schools sets out that they can be reimbursed for costs incurred where the national voucher scheme is not suitable for their families and this can include alternative voucher arrangements with supermarkets that are not part of the national voucher scheme.

I have set up an alternative provision stakeholder group, formed of senior leaders from across the sector, to help us understand and respond to the specific challenges facing alternative provision schools at this time. I meet this group every month.

The support available to the sector is set out in the department’s guidance on vulnerable children and young people:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-on-vulnerable-children-and-young-people/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-on-vulnerable-children-and-young-people.

Alternative provision schools can claim up to £50,000 to cover additional costs, and local authorities and schools should continue to fund commissioned places in alternative provision until the end of the summer term. This is set out in the department’s financial support guidance:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-schools/school-funding-exceptional-costs-associated-with-coronavirus-covid-19-for-the-period-march-to-july-2020.

These are rapidly developing circumstances. We continue to keep the situation under review and will keep Parliament updated accordingly.

The government recognises that the COVID-19 outbreak is bringing significant financial challenges to the higher education (HE) sector and we have been working closely with the sector to monitor the likely impacts.

On 4 May 2020, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, announced a package of measures to ensure sustainability in HE at a time of unprecedented uncertainty.

We will stabilise the admissions system and reprofile tuition fee payments, expected to be worth £2.6 billion, for providers so that they receive more cash in the first term of the 2020/21 academic year. This will have no impact on students but will allow providers to better manage financial risks over the autumn. This will be available to all providers across the UK.

In reprofiling these payments, we are clear in our expectation that providers should use the cashflow benefits appropriately, taking significant steps to improve efficiencies and manage their finances in order to avoid cashflow problems in the future. Reprofiling in this way is a one-off intervention for the autumn term only, to help providers take all necessary steps now to prepare for the future.

In England, we will also be bringing forward £100 million of quality-related research funding for providers to the current academic year to help to address some of the immediate pressures faced by university research activities.

The department will consider purchasing land and buildings where they can be used for new or expanding schools and colleges in England. This will take place as part of existing programmes and using established procedures. This financial year (across purchases from all suitable vendors, including but not limited to HE providers), we have budgeted up to £100 million to acquire sites for planned projects in England. Details are available on GOV.UK at: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-support-package-for-universities-and-students.

These measures are in addition to the unprecedented package of support for businesses already announced by my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, which includes the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and a range of business loan schemes, to help pay wages, keep staff employed and support businesses whose viability is threatened by the outbreak.

The government has also confirmed that providers are eligible to apply for its support packages, including business loan support schemes, which the Office for Students (OfS), the regulator in England, estimates could be worth at least £700 million to the sector.

We will only intervene further where we believe there is a case to do so and where we believe intervention is possible and appropriate and as a last resort.

In such instances, we will work with providers to review their circumstances and assess the need for restructuring and any attached conditions. The department will be working with HM Treasury and other government departments to develop this restructuring regime and with the devolved administrations.

The Government has asked schools and nurseries to prepare to open to more young people from 1 June, with protective measures in place, as part of a phased wider opening of schools.

The Children’s Task and Finish Working Group, established by SAGE (Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies), provided consolidated scientific health advice to Government. Advice from this group was used, alongside other sources of information, to inform decision making on the wider opening schools.

Papers from SAGE meetings are being published in tranches. The first batch was released on 20 March 2020 and further papers were published on 5 May and 22 May 2020, including papers on the wider opening of schools. Further batches will be released regularly.

The list of papers to be released to date is available by following the link below, including a number of schools-related papers. This list will be updated to reflect papers considered at future meetings: https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/scientific-advisory-group-for-emergencies-sage-coronavirus-covid-19-response.

In addition, the department has published an explanatory note to accompany SAGE’s findings from the Interdisciplinary Task and Finish Group. This looked specifically at the role of children in transmission and can be found by following the link below:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/887247/Department_for_Education_explanatory_note_on_SAGE_modelling.pdf.

ONS published analysis of coronavirus (COVID-19) related deaths by ethnic group, England and Wales: 2 March 2020 to 10 April 2020. This provisional analysis has shown that the risk of death involving coronavirus (COVID-19) among some ethnic groups is significantly higher than that of those of white ethnicity. A review, carried out by PHE, will look to understand how different factors -including ethnicity, gender and obesity -can impact on people’s health outcomes from COVID-19. More information can be found by following the link below: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/review-into-factors-impacting-health-outcomes-from-covid-19.

Regional Education and Children’s Teams (REACTs) have been established to better co-ordinate how the Department and Ofsted capture information and intelligence about local needs and circumstances in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, whilst also offering support to local authorities where they need it.

There are nine REACTs across England, representing policy areas including vulnerable, children’s social care, special educational needs and disabilities, schools and further education. Membership includes representatives from Ofsted and the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA). Membership is drawn from existing Departmental and Ofsted staff, so does not require additional funding.

REACTs provide a mechanism for the Department to coordinate conversations with local authorities across education and children’s services, preventing duplication. Through those conversations, REACTs discuss matching practical support offers to those local authority areas that require it. Specifically, Ofsted have to date agreed deployment of 242 staff to 114 local authorities, with 98 having started the deployment (as of 11 May 2020). The purpose of these placements is to assist frontline organisations deal with urgent activities related to COVID-19, or by back-filling roles that enable others to deal with urgent activities related to COVID-19, for example in contacting and tracking vulnerable children.

The support available to supply teachers, and who provides this support, is dependent on whether supply teachers are employed directly by schools or employed by agencies. The Department has developed school workforce guidance on COVID-19, including financial support available to supply teachers:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-school-closures/guidance-for-schools-about-temporarily-closing#supply-teachers-and-other-contingent-workers.

The Department has also developed further guidance on financial support for all education institutions, which is set out below:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-education-early-years-and-childrens-social-care/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-education-early-years-and-childrens-social-care.

The Department is communicating regularly, via a number of channels, with schools, supply agencies and teaching unions on the support available for supply staff during the COVID-19 outbreak.

These are rapidly developing circumstances. We continue to keep the situation under review and will keep Parliament updated accordingly.

The support available to supply teachers, and who provides this support, is dependent on whether supply teachers are employed directly by schools or employed by agencies. The Department has developed school workforce guidance on COVID-19, including financial support available to supply teachers:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-school-closures/guidance-for-schools-about-temporarily-closing#supply-teachers-and-other-contingent-workers.

The Department has also developed further guidance on financial support for all education institutions, which is set out below:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-education-early-years-and-childrens-social-care/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-education-early-years-and-childrens-social-care.

The Department is communicating regularly, via a number of channels, with schools, supply agencies and teaching unions on the support available for supply staff during the COVID-19 outbreak.

These are rapidly developing circumstances. We continue to keep the situation under review and will keep Parliament updated accordingly.

The support available to supply teachers, and who provides this support, is dependent on whether supply teachers are employed directly by schools or employed by agencies. The Department has developed school workforce guidance on COVID-19, including financial support available to supply teachers:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-school-closures/guidance-for-schools-about-temporarily-closing#supply-teachers-and-other-contingent-workers.

The Department has also developed further guidance on financial support for all education institutions, which is set out below:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-education-early-years-and-childrens-social-care/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-education-early-years-and-childrens-social-care.

The Department is communicating regularly, via a number of channels, with schools, supply agencies and teaching unions on the support available for supply staff during the COVID-19 outbreak.

These are rapidly developing circumstances. We continue to keep the situation under review and will keep Parliament updated accordingly.

The Department does not hold information on whether civil servants, special advisers or contract staff have teaching qualifications.

The Department understands the challenging circumstances schools are facing and is working closely with our delivery partners to keep progress towards the reception baseline assessment under regular review. We are gathering feedback from stakeholders on a range of options and will be providing further guidance to schools in the summer term.

24,000 of the children in attendance on Friday 17 April were classed by schools as vulnerable. Of these, around 6,000 had an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan, and 14,000 were children in need (reported by schools as having a social worker). The remainder were unknown, where schools either did not provide this information or the children were classed vulnerable for other reasons. This data corresponds with the last day of the Easter break in most parts of the country.

The department is working with educational settings and local authorities to improve our understanding of the total number of vulnerable children for whom continued attendance at educational establishments would be beneficial and appropriate. This is in recognition of the fact that attendance may not be appropriate for some children, including because of health considerations and risks, and that many children with EHC plans may be able to have their needs met in the home environment. Full guidance on the definition of vulnerable children and options for continued attendance can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-on-vulnerable-children-and-young-people/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-on-vulnerable-children-and-young-people.

From Friday 20 March, schools, colleges and early years settings?have been closed to everyone except children of key workers and vulnerable children, as part of the country’s ongoing response to COVID-19.

We have asked local authorities to suspend any penalty notice action or prosecutions for COVID-19 related absence with immediate effect. Local authorities should update their Code of Conduct for issuing penalty notices to make this clear. New cases should not be taken forward and any cases from 16 March should be withdrawn. This approach should also be applied to prosecutions for non-attendance.

Guidance has been issued on providing support for vulnerable children, including those with special educational needs or disabilities, during the current period of school closures. Schools, colleges, other training providers and local authorities will need to work with parents to make a risk assessment for each child and young person with an education, health and care plan and decide whether their needs should be met though the continuation of provision in their educational setting, or they are able to have their needs met at home.

The latest guidance for schools and other education settings can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-schools-and-other-educational-settings.

From Friday 20 March, schools, colleges and early years settings?have been closed to everyone except children of key workers and vulnerable children, as part of the country’s ongoing response to COVID-19.

We have asked local authorities to suspend any penalty notice action or prosecutions for COVID-19 related absence with immediate effect. Local authorities should update their Code of Conduct for issuing penalty notices to make this clear. New cases should not be taken forward and any cases from 16 March should be withdrawn. This approach should also be applied to prosecutions for non-attendance.

Guidance has been issued on providing support for vulnerable children, including those with special educational needs or disabilities, during the current period of school closures. Schools, colleges, other training providers and local authorities will need to work with parents to make a risk assessment for each child and young person with an education, health and care plan and decide whether their needs should be met though the continuation of provision in their educational setting, or they are able to have their needs met at home.

The latest guidance for schools and other education settings can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-schools-and-other-educational-settings.

As we set out in the UK’s approach to negotiations, we remain open to the UK participating in elements of the Erasmus+ programme, on a time-limited basis, provided the terms are in the UK’s interest.

The specific terms under which the UK could participate in the programme are subject to the future negotiations with the EU, which we hope to conclude as soon as possible.

As we have set out in the UK’s approach to negotiations, we remain open to the UK participating in elements of the Erasmus+ programme on a time-limited basis provided that the terms are in the UK’s interest.

In parallel with the ongoing negotiations, we continue to develop a domestic alternative scheme as part of preparing for every eventuality.

The National Statistics release ‘Permanent and fixed-period exclusions in England 2017 to 2018’ includes information on the number and rate of permanent and fixed period exclusions.

The release is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/permanent-and-fixed-period-exclusions-in-england-2017-to-2018.

In spring 2019, a consultation was held on proposals for a mandatory register of children not attending state or registered independent schools to help local authorities carry out their responsibilities in relation to children not in school.

Almost 5000 responses were received to the consultation which closed in June 2019. They have now been considered and a formal government response document setting out next steps will be issued in due course.

Under the Withdrawal Agreement negotiated with the EU, the UK will continue to participate fully in the current (2014-20) Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps (ESC) programmes. This means that the projects successfully bid for during the current programmes will continue to receive EU funding for the full duration of the project, including those where funding runs beyond 2020 and the end of the transition period. We expect Higher Education mobilities being bid for in 2020 will include some mobilities for academic year 2020-21 and academic year 2021-22, depending on the specific details of individual projects.

The shape and content of EU Programmes post-2020, including Erasmus+, are currently being negotiated within the EU institutions and have not yet been finalised. These EU programmes must be adopted by the EU before any potential formal negotiations on association could begin. The UK is ready to consider participation in certain EU programmes, once the EU has agreed the baseline in its 2021-27 Multiannual Financial Framework, and taking into account the overall value to the UK of doing so.

The Department for Education is the national authority for the Erasmus+ programme in the UK. The Department oversees the work of the UK National Agency, which is responsible for the management and delivery of the programme across the UK. The UK National Agency have been issuing guidance to UK universities with the support of the Department for Education.

The UK government is preparing for every eventuality and is considering a wide range of options with regard to the future of international exchange and collaboration in education and training, including potential domestic alternatives.

Under the Withdrawal Agreement negotiated with the EU, the UK will continue to participate fully in the current (2014-20) Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps (ESC) programmes. This means that the projects successfully bid for during the current programmes will continue to receive EU funding for the full duration of the project, including those where funding runs beyond 2020 and the end of the transition period. We expect Higher Education mobilities being bid for in 2020 will include some mobilities for academic year 2020-21 and academic year 2021-22, depending on the specific details of individual projects.

The shape and content of EU Programmes post-2020, including Erasmus+, are currently being negotiated within the EU institutions and have not yet been finalised. These EU programmes must be adopted by the EU before any potential formal negotiations on association could begin. The UK is ready to consider participation in certain EU programmes, once the EU has agreed the baseline in its 2021-27 Multiannual Financial Framework, and taking into account the overall value to the UK of doing so.

The Department for Education is the national authority for the Erasmus+ programme in the UK. The Department oversees the work of the UK National Agency, which is responsible for the management and delivery of the programme across the UK. The UK National Agency have been issuing guidance to UK universities with the support of the Department for Education.

The UK government is preparing for every eventuality and is considering a wide range of options with regard to the future of international exchange and collaboration in education and training, including potential domestic alternatives.

The Department for Education does not collect data in relation to the national minimum allowance (NMA).

The National Minimum Standards for Fostering Services are clear that every foster parent should receive an allowance that covers the full cost of caring for a child. Whilst local authorities determine the allowance paid to foster parents in their area, the NMA serves as a baseline to the minimum amount that foster parents can expect to receive per week to cover the cost of a child living in their home. Whilst it is not mandatory in regulations, we expect all fostering services to pay at least this amount.

We are continuing to work with fostering services and others in the sector to ensure that the support offered to foster parents meets their needs.

Funding to increase the pupil premium in line with inflation in 2020-21 is included in the £2.6 billion increase announced in the 2019 Spending Round.

The cost of designing the webpage entitled, ‘View national funding formula allocations for your school: 2020 to 2021’, was £112,125.

No specific resource or cost was dedicated to the promotion of the new National Funding Formula website, which formed part of wider communications work that the Department carries out on an ongoing basis.

5.5 full time equivalent digital staff were involved in the design of the 'View national funding formula for schools webpage', with support from a policy official.

No specific resource or cost was dedicated to the promotion of the new National Funding Formula website, which formed part of wider communications work that the Department carries out on an ongoing basis.

​Philip Augar and his independent panel have made thoughtful recommendations on tuition fee levels and loan repayment, the balance of funding between universities, further education, apprenticeships and adult education, and we will consider all these recommendations carefully.

We are considering the report carefully but have not yet taken decisions with regard to the recommendations put forward.

As my right hon. Friend, the Minister of State for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation announced on 20 January at education oral questions, the Government will conclude the review alongside the next Spending Review, providing the sector with clarity about the future of post-18 education and funding.

We want to ensure we have an education system that is accessible to all and encourages the development of the skills we need as a country.

Ministers and officials do not attend trilogues as these are held between the Presidency, the Commission and the representatives from the European Parliament’s CULT committee.

As stated in my answer of 21 January 2020 to Questions 4479, 4480 and 4481, the proposed regulations for the next 2021-27 Erasmus+ programme are still being discussed in the EU and have yet to be finalised.

The government highly values international exchange and cooperation in education and training and, as noted in the Political Declaration, the UK is open to participation in certain EU programmes, such as the next Erasmus+ programme (2021-27), if it is in our interest to do so. Future participation in EU programmes will be a subject of our negotiations on the future UK-EU relationship.

Ministers and officials do not attend trilogues as these are held between the Presidency, the Commission and the representatives from the European Parliament’s CULT committee.

As stated in my answer of 21 January 2020 to Questions 4479, 4480 and 4481, the proposed regulations for the next 2021-27 Erasmus+ programme are still being discussed in the EU and have yet to be finalised.

The government highly values international exchange and cooperation in education and training and, as noted in the Political Declaration, the UK is open to participation in certain EU programmes, such as the next Erasmus+ programme (2021-27), if it is in our interest to do so. Future participation in EU programmes will be a subject of our negotiations on the future UK-EU relationship.

The recent use of the Learning Records Service by a data broker was unauthorised and not sanctioned by the department. There was no data released about individual learners, only a confirmation or denial that a record existed.

The department is conducting thorough and urgent investigations into this which will conclude shortly.

In addition to internal investigations, the department is working with the Information Commissioner’s Office to provide information on the events around this unsanctioned and unauthorised use of the Learning Records Service data by a third party.

The recent use of the Learning Records Service by a data broker was unauthorised and not sanctioned by the department. There was no data released about individual learners, only a confirmation or denial that a record existed.

The department is conducting thorough and urgent investigations into this which will conclude shortly.

In addition to internal investigations, the department is working with the Information Commissioner’s Office to provide information on the events around this unsanctioned and unauthorised use of the Learning Records Service data by a third party.

As stated in the Political Declaration, the UK is open to participate in certain EU programmes, such as the next Erasmus+ programme (2021-27), if it is in our interest to do so.

The proposed regulations for the next 2021-27 Erasmus+ programme are still being discussed in the EU and have yet to be finalised. Future participation in EU programmes will be a subject of our negotiations on the future UK-EU relationship. We do not yet know the specifics of the next programme and therefore it is not appropriate to talk in terms of any preferred option. We will of course assess the value for money of ongoing Erasmus+ participation in light of the finalised programme design.

The UK government wants to ensure that UK and European students can continue to benefit from each other’s world-leading education systems. We are considering a wide range of options with regards to the future of international exchange and collaboration in education and training, including potential domestic alternatives.

As stated in the Political Declaration, the UK is open to participate in certain EU programmes, such as the next Erasmus+ programme (2021-27), if it is in our interest to do so.

The proposed regulations for the next 2021-27 Erasmus+ programme are still being discussed in the EU and have yet to be finalised. Future participation in EU programmes will be a subject of our negotiations on the future UK-EU relationship. We do not yet know the specifics of the next programme and therefore it is not appropriate to talk in terms of any preferred option. We will of course assess the value for money of ongoing Erasmus+ participation in light of the finalised programme design.

The UK government wants to ensure that UK and European students can continue to benefit from each other’s world-leading education systems. We are considering a wide range of options with regards to the future of international exchange and collaboration in education and training, including potential domestic alternatives.

Over recent years, demand for the Care to Learn scheme has fallen. The most significant reason for this fall in demand is the reduction in teenage pregnancy rates, which are now at an all-time low. There has also been a reduction in the number of young people in the population. The Government continues to make Care to Learn available to young parents in qualifying education, where they are aged under 20 at the start of their course and meet the scheme requirements.

When developing the Care to Learn application and payment systems, the Government must ensure that public funding is used appropriately. In developing the systems, the Government reviewed the data required to establish student eligibility and to pay childcare providers and designed the system to request only the minimum information to carry out these checks. The Government plans to keep the service under review and to ensure the process of claiming Care to Learn is as simple as possible.

Over recent years, demand for the Care to Learn scheme has fallen. The most significant reason for this fall in demand is the reduction in teenage pregnancy rates, which are now at an all-time low. There has also been a reduction in the number of young people in the population. The Government continues to make Care to Learn available to young parents in qualifying education, where they are aged under 20 at the start of their course and meet the scheme requirements.

When developing the Care to Learn application and payment systems, the Government must ensure that public funding is used appropriately. In developing the systems, the Government reviewed the data required to establish student eligibility and to pay childcare providers and designed the system to request only the minimum information to carry out these checks. The Government plans to keep the service under review and to ensure the process of claiming Care to Learn is as simple as possible.

As stated in the Political Declaration, the UK is open to participate in certain EU programmes, such as the next Erasmus+ programme (2021-27), if it is in our interest to do so.

The proposed regulations for the next 2021-27 Erasmus+ programme are still being discussed in the EU and have yet to be finalised. Future participation in EU programmes will be a subject of our negotiations on the future UK-EU relationship. We do not yet know the specifics of the next programme and therefore it is not appropriate to talk in terms of any preferred option. We will of course assess the value for money of ongoing Erasmus+ participation in light of the finalised programme design.

The UK government wants to ensure that UK and European students can continue to benefit from each other’s world-leading education systems. We are considering a wide range of options with regards to the future of international exchange and collaboration in education and training, including potential domestic alternatives.

My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, meets regularly with Cabinet colleagues to discuss the Department for Education's agenda. This includes relevant topics covered by the new subjects of Relationships Education (for primary age pupils), Relationships and Sex Education (for secondary age pupils) and Health Education (for all pupils in state-funded schools). The Department is working with Public Health England (PHE), through the RSHE Working Group, to promote join-up on these issues locally.

PHE have regional leads who work with local sexual health services and schools and they provide support to schools with aspects of curriculum delivery; for example with resources covering a range of health issues including sexually transmitted diseases.

In addition, the Department is working with local authorities to understand the breadth of support available for all schools, and what further support local authorities need to ensure strategic co-ordination of school improvement and health priorities.

Our ambition is to level up the skills of the entire nation and ensure that post-16 education providers are in a great shape to deliver this. We are considering how best to achieve this ambition and we will announce details of future capital funding in due course. This will build on the significant uplift in recurrent funding for 16-19 education which we are putting in place for the 2020/21 academic year.

The Department for Education (DfE) has a joint and ambitious programme of work with the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), NHS England, and Health Education England to improve children and young people’s mental health provision in and around schools and colleges. This is being achieved by delivering the proposals set out in the green paper ‘Transforming Children and Young People’s Mental Health Provision’, available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/transforming-children-and-young-peoples-mental-health-provision-a-green-paper.

These proposals include implementing new Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs) in 20-25% of the country by 2023. The MHSTs will support children and young people with mild to moderate mental health issues and help children and young people with more severe needs to access the right support, and provide a link to specialist NHS services. The DfE is also funding the national roll-out of the Link Programme, from October 2019 to 2023, to improve partnership working between schools and colleges and NHS children and young people’s mental health services.

The DfE has not assessed the policy implications of the Education Policy Institute’s report. The responsibility for mental health provision as considered by the report, including increasing the accountability of mental health providers in England and reducing waiting times for their services, is the responsibility of the DHSC.

We are investing an extra £400 million in 16 to 19 education next year to ensure we are building on the skills that our country needs. We will increase the base rate of funding by 4.7%, from £4,000 to £4,188 for the academic year 2020/21. Over and above the base rate rise, this extra spending also includes new resources for high value and high cost courses and funding to support those on level 3 programmes to continue to study English and maths where needed. This is the biggest injection of new money into 16 to 19 education in a single year since 2010 - with funding increasing faster for 16 to 19 than in 5 to 16 schooling – and will mean a significant increase in the average level of funding per student. We will of course continue to look at the needs of 16 to 19 education in future Spending Reviews.

Maintenance costs are not required or provided for sixth form students in the same way as they are required, for example, for students in higher education, because most 16 to 19 year olds live at home. However, financial support is available for disadvantaged students through discretionary bursaries to help with costs such as travel. In addition, bursaries of up to £1,200 a year are available for students in defined vulnerable groups (mainly those living independently or without family financial support), and free meals are also available for disadvantaged students.

We are changing how we allocate the 16 to 19 discretionary bursary fund from the academic year 2020/2021. We will be using up-to-date patterns of disadvantage, and the expected level of support required for travel and industry placement costs, as the basis for funding. This will create institution level allocations that are better matched to student need across the country. There is also financial support available for young parents’ childcare costs and for essential accommodation for financially disadvantaged students where they need to live away from home to participate in a study programme or to attend one of the designated institutions delivering specialist provision.

This funding and financial support has contributed to the current record high proportion of 16 and 17 year olds who are participating in education or apprenticeships since consistent records began.

On 10 January, the Department launched a consultation on removing the exemption from routine inspection that applies to schools judged outstanding by Ofsted. Subject to the outcome of this consultation, the Department will seek Parliamentary approval to lift the exemption. This will require secondary legislation, which needs to be approved by Parliament through the affirmative process. Regulations are required to revoke the Education (Exemption from School Inspection) (England) Regulations 2012 (SI 2012/1293) and changes will also need to be made to the Education (School Inspection) (England) Regulations 2005 (SI 2005/2038).

The Office for Students (OfS) was established through the Higher Education and Research Act (2017), which gave it operational independence in the regulation of the higher education sector. This extends to the holding and sharing of different types of data. In December 2018 the OfS published its data strategy, setting out:

“Where we share data with third parties in support of our regulatory activities, we will only do so where we can be sure that the rights and privacy of individuals are assured. We will ensure that those that process students’ data on our behalf operate to the same high standards. Our uses of data should never go beyond those that students might expect from a responsible regulator acting in their interests.”

Further to this, the OfS Data Protection and Privacy Policy sets out how it complies with data protection legislation. This is available here: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/ofs-privacy.

The Office for Students (OfS) was established through the Higher Education and Research Act (2017), which gave it operational independence in the regulation of the higher education sector. This extends to the holding and sharing of different types of data. In December 2018 the OfS published its data strategy, setting out:

“Where we share data with third parties in support of our regulatory activities, we will only do so where we can be sure that the rights and privacy of individuals are assured. We will ensure that those that process students’ data on our behalf operate to the same high standards. Our uses of data should never go beyond those that students might expect from a responsible regulator acting in their interests.”

Further to this, the OfS Data Protection and Privacy Policy sets out how it complies with data protection legislation. This is available here: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/ofs-privacy.

Under the Withdrawal Agreement Erasmus participation is protected for the transition period. Students, young people and learners will be able to participate fully and for the duration of their exchange in the remainder of the current programme and organisations can continue to bid for Erasmus+ funding to the end of 2020. Organisations should continue to apply for funding as usual.

As stated in the Political Declaration, the UK is open to participate in certain EU programmes, such as the next Erasmus+ programme (2021-27), if it is in our interest to do so.

The UK government is preparing for every eventuality and are considering a wide range of options with regards to the future of international exchange and collaboration in education and training, including potential domestic alternatives.

As my right Hon. Friend, the Prime Minister, has made clear, the government wants to work to continue to build academic cooperation between the UK and the EU. As we enter negotiations on our future relationship with the EU, we want to ensure that UK and European students can continue to benefit from each other’s world-leading education systems.

The government highly values international exchange and cooperation in education and training and recognises the benefits that such cooperation brings. As we prepare to leave the EU, the department has engaged widely with stakeholder groups across the UK, which we will continue to do. In particular, we have received representations from sector bodies such as Universities UK, the Association of Colleges, the Russell Group, MillionPlus and the National Union of Students.

As my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister, has made clear, the government wants to work to continue to build academic cooperation between the UK and the EU. As we enter negotiations on our future relationship with the EU, we want to ensure that UK students and European students can continue to benefit from each other’s world-leading education systems. The UK government is preparing for every eventuality and are considering a wide range of options with regards to the future of international exchange and collaboration in education and training, including potential domestic alternatives. We remain open to participation in Erasmus and this will be part of future negotiations with the EU.

In England, the Countryside Stewardship scheme provides funding for a range of options which support farmland birds by increasing important food sources such as seeds and pollinators, providing nesting and roosting sites, and creating habitats for birds and other species. The scheme has a specific option which supports skylarks by providing nesting habitats in winter cereal crops throughout their breeding season.

As part of our environmental land management approach, participants are able to select from an initial set of eight standards to build their own agreements. Several of these standards contain actions to support birds. For example, the Arable and Horticultural Land Standard aims to support increased farmland biodiversity, including wild bird and pollinator populations through specific actions that will provide year-round resources for farmland birds and insects. Further, the Low and No Input Grassland Standard contains an additional action in its advanced level to provide habitat for wading birds.

Schemes that reward environmental land management will support local environmental priorities while making an important contribution to the delivery of our ambitious national targets and commitments, such as the target to be set to halt the decline of species abundance by 2030 and the establishment of a Nature Recovery Network. For example, the new Landscape Recovery scheme will support the delivery of landscape and ecosystem recovery through long-term, large scale projects, such as by creating woodland and restoring wetland and peatland. The new Local Nature Recovery scheme will also include creating, managing and restoring habitats on a smaller scale.

We are still developing our future policy of badger culling where epidemiological evidence points to a reservoir of disease in badgers. Once the policy has been developed further, we intend to consult on the proposals.

Between 1 November 2020 and 31 October 2021, Defra has received a total of four applications for bathing water designation: two applications at coastal areas and two applications for inland waters. All applications are currently under consideration.

There are no current plans to publish an updated bovine TB policy in terms of epidemiological-led culling of wildlife or wildlife monitoring. Our response in March 2020 to Professor Sir Charles Godfray’s review of government’s bovine tuberculosis eradication strategy set out plans to evolve badger control policy with increased support for badger vaccination, following the wide-scale deployment of effective, industry-led intensive badger culling.

We are now developing measures to make badger vaccination, combined with biosecurity, the focus of addressing risks from wildlife as an exit strategy from intensive culling. Our aim is to allow future badger culls only where the epidemiological evidence points to a reservoir of disease in badgers.

There is little evidence to suggest tuberculosis in other wildlife species is a significant problem that is driving the epidemic in cattle in England. There are no plans, therefore, to control other wildlife species.

Flooding has a devastating impact on communities, businesses and individuals. The Government closely monitors the impact on affected areas.

The decision to trigger financial support from central Government is taken collectively by Ministers in the event of severe weather events with significant impacts on a wide area. In reaching a decision, Ministers consider factors such as severity, duration and extent of the impacts.

During unprecedented flooding in the winter of 2019/2020, the Government announced Property Flooding Resilience (PFR) repair grants of up to £5,000 to help eligible properties affected by floods become more flood resilient. The repair grants apply to those affected in district or unitary authorities that have 25 or more severely flooded properties. Currently, 52 district and unitary councils with over 7700 properties are eligible in England for the November 2019 and February 2020 PFR repair schemes.

The reported impacts during events since December 2020 suggest the numbers of internally flooded properties have been lower than would justify activation of the PFR Repair Scheme. With localised flooding incidents, local authorities are expected to have well established contingency arrangements in place and to be able to support their local communities from within existing budgets. Councils have discretionary powers to fund grants or loans for home improvements, this can include funding for PFR measures.

The UK has a highly resilient food supply chain. Our food security depends on supply from diverse sources, from strong domestic production as well as imports from stable and diverse sources. This ensures that any disruption from risks such as adverse weather or disease does not affect the UK’s overall security of supply.

Our thorough preparations for leaving the EU in 2019, alongside the lessons we have learned from the range of interventions deployed during the Covid-19 response provide a robust foundation for planning on food supply this winter.

We are currently working alongside industry and across Government including with the Devolved Administrations to review our plans for the end of this year. These will incorporate the potential concurrence of further peaks of Covid-19, supply chain risks at the end of the transition period and other potential risks such as severe weather and seasonal flu.

Through the UK Agriculture Market Monitoring Group (UKAMMG), Defra and the Devolved Administrations we continue to monitor the market situation across various agricultural commodities. The group will enable us to remain agile and to identify, and respond as required, to any unforeseen impacts on food producers.

The Government appreciates that parts of the food and farming sectors are currently facing unprecedented challenges as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Farmers and food processors are, where eligible, able to apply for public support through the various Covid-19 related Government schemes including Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme and the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS). On 24 September, the Government announced an extension to its access to finance schemes to 30 November 2020 for new applicants and introduced ‘Pay as you Grow’ options for BBLS borrowers, who will be offered more time and greater flexibility for their repayments.

Bathing waters are designated through an application process and Defra welcomes applications for designation for both coastal and inland waters such as rivers. Local authorities, groups and individuals can apply for sites to be designated. Defra encourages this by writing to the Chief Executive of every local authority in England, as well as by sending similar letters to other stakeholders like swimming associations. It is these local authorities and stakeholders who will best know which popular riverside bathing areas may be suitable for designation.

All applications are considered in line with our usual process, the details of which are available on gov.uk. There is currently a consultation seeking the public’s views on a proposal submitted by a local group to designate an area of the River Wharfe, between Ilkley Main Bridge and Beanlands Island, as a designated bathing water. The consultation ends 2 October.

The Government is committed to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050. This includes taking action to increase the use of renewable energy across the Government estate. Where this relates to solar panels and wind turbines on buildings occupied by Defra, active consideration will be given to installation.

The amounts of renewable energy generated by Defra Group including the Environment Agency, Kew Gardens and Forestry Commission over the last five years are included in the attached table.

We have used between 0.1% and 1.3% of renewable energy generated from our buildings over the last five years.

The amount of renewable electricity used each year varies, due to differing parts of the department using renewable and non-renewable electricity. The differing amounts these constitute vary each year depending on operational need.

Based on the miles that were flown as given in my answer to PQ 19056, Defra has emitted the following amounts of carbon dioxide (CO ₂).

Since 2009-10 the department has reduced its CO₂ emissions by 49% in 2019-20. Rather than offsetting our emissions, we have done this through investing in energy efficiency measures across our estate, reducing the amount of travel we do and changing the way we travel to lower CO₂ emitting forms of transport, shrinking our estate and we have benefitted from the UK grid becoming greener. All of these measures have contributed to our fall in CO₂ emissions.

The Government is currently investing £2.6 billion across the country to deliver more than 1,000 flood defence projects to better protect 300,000 homes by 2021. Since 2015, £24 million has been spent in Oxfordshire to reduce the risk of flooding. The Oxford Flood Alleviation Scheme is fully funded, and construction is due to begin after the replacement of the A423 Kennington Railway Bridge.

We are spending £5.62 million in Oxfordshire this year of which £2.3 million is on the Oxford Flood Alleviation Scheme which, when completed, will protect 1,200 homes. The rest of the money spent this year is towards other schemes, including looking at the early feasibility for schemes that could provide protection in the future if viable

In Abingdon, the previously proposed flood storage area to reduce flood risk is not being progressed due to the low number of properties that will have their flood risk reduced. Other options are currently being considered for the town.

Government funding is governed by the rules of the Partnership Funding Policy and the formula for allocating the Government’s contribution is weighted towards protecting people’s lives and homes.

The Environment Agency will continue to work with Oxfordshire County Council on solutions for flooding across the county.

National Park Authority members are selected by constituent local authorities or parish councils or are appointed by the Secretary of State following open competition.

The independent review of Designated Landscapes led by Julian Glover, published in 2019, proposed reforms to the governance of National Parks. The proposed reforms do not include direct elections to National Park Authorities. The Government is carefully considering the Glover proposals and will respond in due course.

The Department has flown 1,203,364 miles in the last six months (based on the date flights were invoiced).

The table below shows the number of miles by calendar year since 2015 (based on the date the flights were invoiced).

We fully support the growth of offshore wind and recognise the essential role it plays in meeting the net zero target. Defra has a significant interest in offshore wind development in terms of its potential to contribute to meeting the Government’s climate change commitments, and we also have a critical role in ensuring the protection of our marine environment, particularly across our network of designated Marine Protected Areas.

We are working with other Government bodies, the Crown Estate, industry and wider stakeholders to mitigate against, and prepare for, any environmental impacts of growth in the offshore wind sector. This programme of measures will enable the responsible and sustainable growth of offshore wind.

The Government Property Agency (GPA) does not have plans for the installation of solar panels and wind turbines on the DIT buildings for which GPA is responsible.

However, GPA is developing a ‘Government Office Net Zero Programme’ to support the following targets of HM Government:

• To reduce the United Kingdom’s net emissions of greenhouse gases by 100% relative to 1990 levels by 2050, making our nation a ‘Net Zero’ emitter

• To have at least a 50% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions across the public sector estate by 2032, against a 2017 baseline.

GPA has committed to the following objectives for the estate they manage:

• Improve energy efficiency (reduce consumption/improve thermal efficiency)

• Use green energy (decarbonise)

• Generate and store green energy (locally)

• Reduce embodied carbon (in construction)

To meet the third objective, GPA is currently assessing opportunities for the local generation and storage of green energy on a number of buildings within their estate, which may include solar panels and wind turbines.

GPA plans to request funding for the ‘Government Office Net Zero Programme’ as part of the 2020 Spending Review. The buildings that may be in scope, preferred technologies and precise funding are all subject to further development and approval.

The Department for International Trade’s (DIT) staff across the UK operate in a nine-region structure across England, as well as having a presence in Scotland, all of which work to support businesses across the whole of the UK to export and grow overseas, as well as to attract Foreign Direct Investment. The current forecast staff pay costs for these teams in 2019-20 are set out below.

* Staff costs are recorded against the Midlands as a whole and are not separated between East and West Midlands

** Staff costs for staff who support London and staff who support Scotland are reported together and can not be separated.

Other functions at DIT are not organised into English regions.

The 2019-20 full year forecast staff costs of all civil servants and other staff working in the UK is £139,114,653.

The annual property rental costs in 2019-20 of all DIT’s buildings by English region are:-

These buildings accommodate staff from a number of different teams from across DIT. It is not possible to identify the rental costs of space in these buildings occupied solely by the regional teams supporting businesses to export.

The printing cost of the updated ‘Exporting: A Toolkit for MPs’ that was distributed on 22 January 2019 was £901.56. There were no postage costs incurred.

The Exporting Toolkit has been sent to all Members of Parliament. Those interested in working with the Exporting is GREAT campaign and the Department for International Trade can use the toolkit to help inform businesses in their constituency about international trade and the support available to take advantage of export opportunities.

The Export Hub is a mobile outreach platform that hosts workshops and advice sessions so that businesses across the UK can access Department for International Trade export services on their doorstep. It is available for use by Members of Parliament to help boost exports in their constituencies.

The spend on the Export hub is as follows:

• In this financial year to date: £1,195,253.34
• Over the last six months (August 2019 to January 2020): £1,009,189.32
• This calendar year to date: £100,799.19

We are not able to break these costs down by operation, maintenance and promotion.

The Department does not hold data on the length of time spent by hauliers waiting to board a ferry at Dover. The Port of Dover operates a ‘turn up and go service’ meaning HGVs will be placed on to the first available ferry when they arrive at the Port. There may be an occasion when hauliers have to wait which may be due to peak periods of traffic at the Port. The Kent Resilience Forum (KRF) is responsible for traffic management in Kent.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has an ongoing campaign to increase the number of examiners by recruiting around 300 driving examiners between 1 April 2021 and June 2022. As at 8 November 2021, 190 examiners have been recruited.

42 of these examiners that were recruited during this period were actively conducting practical driving tests on a full-time basis as at 8 November 2021. A total of 62 have completed training into driving test centres.

As a result of all previous recruitment campaigns, there are 75 people either attending, or booked to attend, their training between now and January 2022. There are 53 candidates who are at various stages of the pre-employment checks awaiting confirmation of start date.

A new exercise will launch w/c 15 November 2021 to recruit to maintain a continued pipeline of new entrants into training courses January / February 2022 onwards.

To support the recruitment campaign, the Agency is also exploring options to temporarily contract in experienced driving assessors from other road safety organisations to become driving examiners.

The DVSA has put a number of measures in place to increase practical driving tests and reduce waiting times. These include offering a national recovery allowance and annual leave buy back to examiners, asking all those qualified to conduct tests, but who do not do so as part of their current day job, to return to conducting tests, and conducting out of hours testing (such as on public holidays and weekends).

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has a number of measures in place to increase the availability of practical driving tests. These include offering a national recovery allowance and annual leave buy back to examiners, asking all those qualified to conduct tests, but who do not do so as part of their current day job, to return to conducting tests, and conducting out of hours testing (such as on public holidays and weekends).

The DVSA has also started a recruitment campaign to increase the number of examiners. To support this campaign, the agency is exploring options to temporarily employ experienced driving assessors from other road safety organisations to become driving examiners.

Returning to seven tests a day per examiner in June allowed the DVSA to increase capacity across the national network by an average of 15,000 to 20,000 tests per month. The aim was to increase testing capacity as quickly as possible, whilst maintaining a COVID-secure service for customers and examiners.

The DVSA has also published and promoted the top 10 reasons for failing the driving test, giving tips to candidates and instructors on how to avoid these faults. The DVSA is asking instructors to encourage their pupils to rearrange their test for a later date if they regularly make these mistakes during their lessons or private practice. The DVSA is also encouraging learners to practise driving on a variety of roads and in different conditions, so they are better prepared for their test. Helping learners to be fully prepared will give them a better chance of passing, meaning they could potentially avoid their theory test expiring.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has a number of measures in place to increase the availability of practical driving tests. These include offering a national recovery allowance and annual leave buy back to examiners, asking all those qualified to conduct tests, but who do not do so as part of their current day job, to return to conducting tests, and conducting out of hours testing (such as on public holidays and weekends).

The DVSA has also started a recruitment campaign to increase the number of examiners. To support this campaign, the agency is exploring options to temporarily contract in experienced driving assessors from other road safety organisations to become driving examiners.

After lockdown, the DVSA returned to six tests per day (rather than seven) to ease examiners back into the workplace and to allow additional time between tests for COVID-secure measures to be carried out. From the 14 June, and following discussion with Public Health England, the DVSA returned to seven practical car tests, per day, per examiner in England, Scotland and Wales.

Returning to seven tests a day per examiner will allow the DVSA to increase capacity across the national network by an average of 15,000 to 20,000 tests per month. The aim is to increase testing capacity as quickly as possible, whilst maintaining a COVID-secure service for customers and examiners.

The information requested in questions 58489 and 58490 is not readily available and can only be provided at disproportionate cost as it would involve scrutinising each application that is awaiting processing. Paper driving licence applications are currently taking between six and ten weeks to process. There may be additional delays in processing more complex transactions, for example if medical investigations are needed. The latest information on turnaround times for paper driving licence applications can be found here.

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) has a rapid response corporate services team to engage key stakeholders, including trade associations. Formal four-weekly review meetings take place where stakeholders can raise issues/concerns and provide feedback from members. The DVLA has regular contact with key stakeholders to resolve issues and address concerns quickly. This includes providing information on timescales for processing applications, working to prioritise urgent applications where they are business-critical or employment is at risk and also provided a dedicated contact point for fuel companies to progress vocational licence applications.

The information requested in questions 58489 and 58490 is not readily available and can only be provided at disproportionate cost as it would involve scrutinising each application that is awaiting processing. Paper driving licence applications are currently taking between six and ten weeks to process. There may be additional delays in processing more complex transactions, for example if medical investigations are needed. The latest information on turnaround times for paper driving licence applications can be found here.

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) has a rapid response corporate services team to engage key stakeholders, including trade associations. Formal four-weekly review meetings take place where stakeholders can raise issues/concerns and provide feedback from members. The DVLA has regular contact with key stakeholders to resolve issues and address concerns quickly. This includes providing information on timescales for processing applications, working to prioritise urgent applications where they are business-critical or employment is at risk and also provided a dedicated contact point for fuel companies to progress vocational licence applications.

The information requested in questions 58489 and 58490 is not readily available and can only be provided at disproportionate cost as it would involve scrutinising each application that is awaiting processing. Paper driving licence applications are currently taking between six and ten weeks to process. There may be additional delays in processing more complex transactions, for example if medical investigations are needed. The latest information on turnaround times for paper driving licence applications can be found here.

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) has a rapid response corporate services team to engage key stakeholders, including trade associations. Formal four-weekly review meetings take place where stakeholders can raise issues/concerns and provide feedback from members. The DVLA has regular contact with key stakeholders to resolve issues and address concerns quickly. This includes providing information on timescales for processing applications, working to prioritise urgent applications where they are business-critical or employment is at risk and also provided a dedicated contact point for fuel companies to progress vocational licence applications.

No cameras deployed on level crossings within Oxfordshire or the Oxford West and Abingdon constituency have been switched off, or remain off, since 1 January 2021.

This reflects that the safety of users of level crossings in Oxfordshire and across the Network Rail estate are of paramount importance.

On 7 February 2020, the Department published a detailed breakdown of annual investment in cycling and walking from 2016/17 to 2018/19 alongside the first report on progress made towards delivering the Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy (CWIS). This includes information on how much funding each local authority received over that period. Copies of the report and other associated information are available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/investment-schedule-in-cycling-and-walking-interventions. An update including a detailed breakdown of annual investment in 2019/20 and 2020/21 will be published in due course. In the meantime, local authority allocations under the Active Travel Fund in 2020/21 are available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/emergency-active-travel-fund-local-transport-authority-allocations/emergency-active-travel-fund-total-indicative-allocations.

The Department is not in the lead on this project, which is being promoted and progressed by Oxfordshire County Council (OCC) and funded by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. Highways England is working closely with OCC on the design and modelling of this interchange.

The number of deaths and injuries in reported road accidents on the B4044 for the last 12 months and last 5 years for which data is available can be found in the tables below.

Oxfordshire County Council’s bid for funding from tranche 2 of the Emergency Active Travel Fund did not include a bid for funding for this particular scheme. Details of how this scheme is being taken forward can be found on Oxfordshire County Council’s website at https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/residents/roads-and-transport/roadworks/major-current-roadworks/botley-road-phase-1 .

The Government confirmed in March, as part of the second Road Investment Strategy, that further development of this scheme has been paused. This is while we consider how roads investment, alongside other transport investment, can best support the Government’s ambition for the Oxford to Cambridge Arc, and benefit people who live and work there.

The table below shows the number of fatalities and all casualties in reported road accidents on the A34 in Oxfordshire in 2018.

Number of fatalities and all casualties in reported road accidents on the A34 in Oxfordshire in 2018:

1. All casualties include fatalities Source: DfT STATS19

Data for 2019 will be published on September 30 2020.

As part of improving the sustainable performance of our estate, the Department is looking at the feasibility of introducing further renewables to support the decarbonisation process. All options for the introduction of renewables will be explored particularly where they can act as a replacement for systems/functions which currently rely on a fossil fuel source. The additional renewables will form part of our next estates operational sustainability strategy which is being developed to align with the latest Greening Government Commitments framework of targets and also the development of a trajectory towards Net Zero.

The requested information is as follows:

On 8 August, the Department for Transport announced a further funding package for bus operators with rolling funding at up to £27.3 million per week until a time when the funding is no longer needed. Also on 8 August the Department for Education announced a new £40 million funding package for local authorities to support home to school transport. This funding can be used for a variety of transport types/providers as appropriate, including coaches, bus vehicles, community transport vehicles, taxis and private hire vehicles, and SEND (Special Educational Needs Disability) transport.

In addition, the Department for Transport has provided support and grants totalling £7.25 million to local authorities to develop a Travel Demand Management Plan to understand school and work travel patterns and ensure there is safe and sufficient transport for schools.

While the Government will do what we can to support local authorities, solutions must be locally led, with local authorities working closely with transport operators and schools/colleges to identify local area needs and decide the best way to increase capacity, while ensuring value for money of this new funding.

The Department maintains regular contact with transport operators on a range of issues affecting the network, including capacity and messaging during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The rail industry supported by government is taking a variety of approaches to keep passengers informed about what’s happening across the rail network. National Rail Enquiries (NRE) is making a range of real time updates available across its platforms based on operational train data provided by the train operators and industry systems. Additionally, the NRE Alert Me service as announced by the Secretary of State at a No10 press conference on May 23^rd helps passengers to stagger their journeys and avoid busy hotspots on the rail network, allowing passengers to travel safely and maintain social distancing.

To manage the expected increased demand for public transport, the Department is seeking to provide travel demand management support to local authorities in England outside London. However, it is clear that solutions must be locally led between transport authorities and operators.

The Zipabout Passenger Connect service is freely available through the National Rail Enquiries (NRE) Alert Me service for anyone to sign up to via the website link (here: https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/times_fares/208333.aspx). The Department is working with NRE on increasing the visibility and promotion of the messaging service on the website and app.

Work is underway currently to consider how we can roll out similar services to users of other public transport.

Government funding for the Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy (CWIS) includes ringfenced and non-ringfenced funds. On the 7^th February 2020 the Department published the first CWIS report to parliament which provides details of the funding that has been made available to all local authorities for cycling and walking under various funding streams.

In 2018/19 the Oxford to Cambridge Arc local authorities received a total of approximately £2 million of ringfenced funding from the Access Fund, Bikeability and the Cycle Safety Fund. Bedford, Peterborough and Northamptonshire also received support to develop Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plans (LCWIPS). Cycling and walking funding figures for 2019/20 are not yet available. In the current financial year, the Government is also providing £225 million of funding to combined authorities and local transport authorities under the Emergency Active Travel Fund: details of allocations to all authorities are available via gov.uk.

Contributory factors assigned by police officers do not assign blame for the accident to any specific road user, however they do provide some insight into why and how road accidents occur. They give an indication of which factors the attending officer thought contributed to the accident. Officers do not need to carry out a full investigation of the incident before allocating contributory factors; they usually use professional judgement about what they can see at the scene. Not all accidents are included in the contributory factor data; only accidents where the police attended the scene and reported at least one contributory factor are included.

The number of pedal cyclists killed in road accidents where a contributory factor of ‘Poor or defective road surface’ was reported, in Great Britain, between the years 2009 and 2018 can be found in the below table:

Poor or defective road surface

Includes any obvious road surface defect such as potholes and cracks. Also includes roads where a worn surface or poor skid resistance is thought to have contributed to the accident.

Number of grant payments of the Plug-in Car Grant in each financial year since the inception of the scheme in in 2010, and the amount of funding from the public purse which has been disbursed under the Plug-in car Grant Scheme in each financial year since the inception of that scheme are shown in the table below.

*The number of individual grant payments and the amount of grant paid from 2019/20 and 2020/21 do not correlate well because there is a delay of up to 9 months between an order being placed on the Plug in Car Grant portal and the vehicle being delivered to the customer, at which point payment is made. Therefore, the number of grant payments (46,561) in 2019/20 will rise as orders for cars which were placed on the portal in FY19/20 are delivered to the customer. Total orders placed in 2019/20, including the 46561 for which payment has been made, were 98508.

Number of grant payments of the Plug-in Car Grant in each financial year since the inception of the scheme in in 2010, and the amount of funding from the public purse which has been disbursed under the Plug-in car Grant Scheme in each financial year since the inception of that scheme are shown in the table below.

*The number of individual grant payments and the amount of grant paid from 2019/20 and 2020/21 do not correlate well because there is a delay of up to 9 months between an order being placed on the Plug in Car Grant portal and the vehicle being delivered to the customer, at which point payment is made. Therefore, the number of grant payments (46,561) in 2019/20 will rise as orders for cars which were placed on the portal in FY19/20 are delivered to the customer. Total orders placed in 2019/20, including the 46561 for which payment has been made, were 98508.

The slides at the daily Downing Street press conferences are kept under constant review.

The Department is continually gathering evidence from a variety sources in order to monitor changes in cycling levels.

The Lodge Hill interchange is being progressed and developed by Oxfordshire County Council (OCC). Highways England is working closely with OCC on the design and modelling of this interchange. The assessment of the effect of COVID-19 restrictions on the completion date for this project would be for OCC to comment on as scheme promoter.

The Government recognises the importance of safeguarding the viability of businesses in the transport and logistics sector. That is why the Government has announced an unprecedented package of financial measures to support businesses through the COVID-19 pandemic, worth £350 billion.

Bespoke interventions have been used to protect critical services across many forms of transport, including lifeline services for remote locations. Any such intervention to support specific businesses must represent value for money for the taxpayer.

The Department continues to collect, receive and assess data about the transport and logistics industry. This includes in respect of the level of transport and logistics operations and labour availability. The effects of the pandemic have been substantial and varied across the industry.

The Department for Transport is aware of concerns raised by the industry over potential delays to the renewal of taxi and private hire vehicle licences and will be looking at this further.

Those that are self-employed or earning below the Lower Earnings Limit of £118 per week and have COVID-19 or are advised to self-isolate can now more easily make a claim for Universal Credit or new style Employment and Support Allowance. There is also a monthly advance available.

Those self-employed or who own a business and are concerned about not being able to pay tax bills because of COVID-19, they may be eligible for support through HMRC’s Time to Pay service.

For small companies who are eligible for Small Business Rates Relief who could provide relief; funding for the scheme will be provided to local authorities by government in early April.

The Department for Transport is aware of concerns raised by the industry over potential delays to the renewal of taxi and private hire vehicle licences and will be looking at this further.

Those that are self-employed or earning below the Lower Earnings Limit of £118 per week and have COVID-19 or are advised to self-isolate can now more easily make a claim for Universal Credit or new style Employment and Support Allowance. There is also a monthly advance available.

Those self-employed or who own a business and are concerned about not being able to pay tax bills because of COVID-19, they may be eligible for support through HMRC’s Time to Pay service.

For small companies who are eligible for Small Business Rates Relief who could provide relief; funding for the scheme will be provided to local authorities by government in early April.

The A39 Camelford bypass scheme proposal has been submitted for consideration under the Major Road Network and Large Local Majors programme.

Officials are working with the Local Authority to support them as they develop the scheme. A decision regarding the scheme’s further development is due shortly.

The franchise agreement allows train operators to participate at their discretion in a wide range of schemes of benefit to passengers without seeking Secretary of State consent, but does not mandate non-national schemes.

We are committed to taking decisive action on the recommendation of the Williams Rail Review this year. Fare transformation is already underway in the form of a single-leg fares trial on LNER and the announcement of flexible season ticket trial for passengers travelling on certain routes with GTR, due to launch later this year. We have also established a new ‘fares trials fund’, to kick start further trials this year across the country. These will save thousands of passengers money, and provide the foundations for reform of the whole fares system.

The franchise agreement allows train operators to participate at their discretion in a wide range of schemes of benefit to passengers without seeking Secretary of State consent, but does not mandate non-national schemes.

We are committed to taking decisive action on the recommendation of the Williams Rail Review this year. Fare transformation is already underway in the form of a single-leg fares trial on LNER and the announcement of flexible season ticket trial for passengers travelling on certain routes with GTR, due to launch later this year. We have also established a new ‘fares trials fund’, to kick start further trials this year across the country. These will save thousands of passengers money, and provide the foundations for reform of the whole fares system.

The franchise agreement allows train operators to participate at their discretion in a wide range of schemes of benefit to passengers without seeking Secretary of State consent, but does not mandate non-national schemes.

We are committed to taking decisive action on the recommendation of the Williams Rail Review this year. Fare transformation is already underway in the form of a single-leg fares trial on LNER and the announcement of flexible season ticket trial for passengers travelling on certain routes with GTR, due to launch later this year. We have also established a new ‘fares trials fund’, to kick start further trials this year across the country. These will save thousands of passengers money, and provide the foundations for reform of the whole fares system.

The franchise agreement allows train operators to participate at their discretion in a wide range of schemes of benefit to passengers without seeking Secretary of State consent, but does not mandate non-national schemes.

We are committed to taking decisive action on the recommendation of the Williams Rail Review this year. Fare transformation is already underway in the form of a single-leg fares trial on LNER and the announcement of flexible season ticket trial for passengers travelling on certain routes with GTR, due to launch later this year. We have also established a new ‘fares trials fund’, to kick start further trials this year across the country. These will save thousands of passengers money, and provide the foundations for reform of the whole fares system.

In developing a business case for the expressway, appropriate account has been taken of the housing growth that is already being planned in the area and both the Department and Highways England have engaged with local authorities across the Oxford-Cambridge Arc including about their local plans. We will provide an update on whether the project should continue in due course.